If Arty had to count each of the odd and bizarre moments that had happened to him through out his life he would probably be done just in time for judgment day, and that is if he just included all the strange events that happened since he came to Shine City. Having his beard randomly stroked by a lady in the park may have been out there, but it was far from the weirdest thing to him, Arty could tell quite the interesting tales about drunken cat suit wearing men that he had to help home after quite the "hairy" party at LUSH. A slight shiver ran down the Irishman's spine as he tried to shake off the memories that managed to crawl their way from the back of his mind. In an attempt to ward off the horrifying the skin tight images Arty retraced the events of his day. After the whole situation with the blue haired girl Arty eventually made it to the gym where he worked out, helped spot and give some pointers to a few of the comers, and even had some time to hop into the ring and go a few matches with some not so lucky opponents, he wasn't Shine City's raining boxing champ for nothing. He also had to turn down another job from Devin to become a personal trainer, Arty loved the gym but he had made too many friends at LUSH just to get up and leave not matter how huge of an ass hat his boss was.

As he was lost in thought Arty's body went into autopilot and began checking IDs and either letting people into the foam filled fun or sending them off into the night in disappointment, after doing this job for so long this process becomes second nature. The club was usually packed, but tonight even more people were appearing out of the wood work, apparently everyone and their nan had heard Nori's promise of a wet and wild evening and decided to take her up on that offer. The only thing more ridicules than the line to get into Lush that night was the practical mountain of broken IDs that piled up in the trash bin next to Arty's feet. He usually ran across half a dozen or so fake IDs a night, he had quite the talent at spotting them, but tonight it seemed every Shine City student thought it would be a good idea to test their luck and try to get past Arty. The redhead couldn't help but smirk at their efforts, he remembered when he was still a lad and sneaking himself into places no young man had any business being in. He let out a slight chuckle as he let another person into the club, yeah odd but fun day.

As the line moved on and on Arty scanned the faces, already picking out those he knew would be too young and would undoubtedly present him with yet another fake ID that he would get to add to his ever growing mountain of broken plastic. He was able to recognize a few of the faces here or there, some regular club goers others his usual young rejects in some form of improvised disguised and a false hope of not being noticed in their eyes. None of them really gained too much of his attention until he saw the brilliant blue stand out of the crowd. "Can't be..." The bulky bouncer thought to himself as he scanned the young lady's face from afar, only for his doubts to be laid to rest. Indeed that was his running mate from earlier in the line slowly making her way to him, what are the odds? Arty couldn't help but chuckle slightly. "Seems that the night is only going to get more interestin'..." He spoke half to himself with yet another chuckle.

Annabelle lay back in her bed, staring at the ceiling and thinking over the events of the day. This was pretty normal for a Saturday night, or any night really. The insecure stagehand had a lot of alone time. Here she was, alone with her thoughts. She liked it that way. Outside there were people, and as Anna had often concluded from this very spot, people were weird. They were always laughing or crying, sometimes about the same things. Some were kind, others cruel, and some seemed to change personalities depending on the situation. Behind the surface though, they were all making judgements. Although, that wasn't really their fault, and it wasn't really a bad thing. People look at things, they form opinions... that's just how life worked. She did it too. Even as she watched them, or thought about them from the confines of her tiny apartment, she too was making judgments. Not bad ones, but judgements nonetheless. This was were being invisible gave a certain advantage. If people saw her, they would have an opinion- but it wasn't that idea which kept her hiding in her room on a Saturday night. It was the uncertainty. While it was entirely possible that people would accept her, they thought that they might not always seemed to leave here laying here in darkness. It was a small apartment with a single window, curtains drawn back to reveal the light of the city. Tiny as it was, it had a beautiful view, and the crowded space felt very comfortable to Annabelle. This was her sanctuary. Nobody could see her here. In this room, atop these covers, the world started to make sense.

She thought now about how today had gone. Her trip to the arcade had taken an interesting turn... she hadn't played with other people in quite some time. It had been nice though. Eidel had been nice. It was surprising that the girl had noticed her. She'd seemed so confident, whereas Anna walked with her shoulders arched, hiding her face from the world. Normally, nobody would have looked twice. It was a good thing she had though. Grinning, she recalled the young gamer singing and doing her penguin dance. Perhaps she should have asked for her number or something? It would have been nice to remain in contact. Or was that weird? She wasn't sure if it was okay to ask somebody for their number after only a few hours, even if those hours were spent laughing and rocking out with fake instruments. It really was a great game. She glanced over at her own plastic guitar, propped up against the wall behind a pile of laundry. She could play now...

It wouldn't be the same. She remembered the girl approaching, smiling. And then there was SAW. He'd smiled at her too, acknowledging her existence multiple times. He must be pretty friendly. He'd been an impressive player too. She tried to picture his face now. Light brown hair, kind of scruffy, but with rather attractive features... SAW, she thought. I'm gonna destroy you. The man had seemed a bit out-of practice, but had still destroyed the other scores on the board- Annabelle's included. Much as she hated to admit it, she was kinda proud of her initials on those screens. In this small way, it was like she wasn't always hiding. That, or she just hated losing. On the Third Strike cabinet, her name would now hold the third spot. Not for long. She'd make it the first. She'd never seen the man at the arcade before, and didn't know if he would come back. Perhaps he'd never know if she managed to beat him. Even so, it was a matter of pride, and what little pride she had needed to be preserved. She hoped she'd see him again.

Deciding against taking up the plastic instrument, she reached for her real guitar instead. Sometimes she'd lay there and think until she went to sleep, but tonight she wasn't tired at all. Her hands wrapped around the wooden instrument, and she looked out the window for inspiration. What should she play? Outside, the black streets of the city were dotted with lights. The closest (aside from streetlamps) came from a building a little ways down the block. It was a bar, she remembered. Before, the lights had always been off by now. Today it must have opened. Beyond that there were more streetlamps, restaurants, and clubs with lights still blazing in the distance. It was nice to have a top floor apartment. She could almost see her workplace from here. Ah yes, work! The stage there was often filled with bands, but it was the plays that Anna really loved. Especially musicals. In fact, she'd been working hard on writing her own.

Reality losin' its grasp
I'm fallin' forward, pulling back
Something clutches at my chest
Is it pain or nothingness?
Can't find my way, can't find any way at all
Please don't blame me even though it's all my fault

I just feel so strange...

She began to sing through one of the songs, a somewhat depressing ballad that occurred near the climax of her script. She strummed along on the guitar, attempting to match the chords to her voice. Then she hit a wrong note, and abruptly stopped. This always happened. She was okay at writing lyrics and melodies, and it was okay if her singing sucked... if this was ever performed in front of people, it would be by someone far more talent. But writing the actual "music" part of the songs was both necessary and ridiculously difficult. She tried again, and failed again. Maybe she should just go back to writing out the fight scenes.

Anna had nearly forgotten about that. She'd meant to do some research into weapons and fighting styles, but had gone to play video games instead. Onstage, Anna had great work ethic, but outside of that she was actually pretty lazy. Oh well, the library would be closed by now. She'd go there tomorrow, and maybe visit a couple of the local book stores. For now, there was little she could do. Setting the guitar back onto the floor, she sat down by the window. She didn't try to identify the buildings this time. Looking out across this place she called home, the lights that danced across the streets and sky, Annabelle Wolfe thought all sorts of strange and curious thoughts. Eventually her vision blurred, and she drifted off to sleep.

Theodore Maxwell

---

The moment the round of free drinks was announced to the bar, Theo felt a pair of eyes bore into his soul wishing harm upon him. Theo smiling knowing how exactly whose eyes where boring into him and it was merely a matter of time untill Jack came back over to tell him off. Sure enough about three minutes after the announcement, Jack came over and tapped Theo on the back rather hard. Theo turning around to meet his friend a sly grin plastered on his face.
"OH! Jack you're here. I thought you didn't show up." Theo stated struggling not to laugh at his friend, who had the look of pure irritation plastered on his face.
"You know I was. You white haired shit. Now thanks to you, the girls are interested in talking to you. I was so dam close to. I was going to even share one with you."
"Oh? Well that's such a shame. I'm sure you'll have better luck next time. However, don't lie to me little Jack we both know you don't share. Now if you like I'll leave you be for ... well you know ... a price." Theo stated with a cheeky carefree grin, earning an annoyed huff out of Jack.
"Name it."
"I think you can provide the funds to cover this little debt I'll be in occurring in a few minutes." Theo said gesturing towards the bar tender.
"You fuc ... little swine. Fine, but no more drinks out of me."
"Very well, just handover amount and I'll deal with the rest." Theo said watching his friend pull a few hundred out of his wallet and give it to him.
"Sometimes I hate you and wonder why we're friends. You asshat" Jack stated walking away Theo, looking very proud of himself as he turned back towards the bartender.
"Just as I planned that sucker falls for it every time. Here, this should cover whatever I owe you. If not, then let me know." Theo stated placing a stack of several notes on the bar. Each note being a hundred dollar bill.

With what he would owe the bar mostly being covered or covered in fill. Theo leaned on the bar and down the rest of his current drink before asking for another. Theo gently starting to sway, as the alcohol slowly started to enter his system leaving Theo quite relaxed. " This place is awesome ... I'll be coming back here again." he said somewhat loudly to no one in particular. Looking over at Jack who meet Theo's gaze with a glare. Unable and unwilling Theo to contain himself Theo stuck his tongue out at Jack, as if to rubbing his victory in his friends face. His tongue was returned with a very quick salute with the middle finger, Theo snickering amused by his friends now partly bad mood that he caused, the young man not caring if it might be considered childish to annoy his friend.
Not wanting to annoy his friend anymore Theo scanned the bar as now he wanted to find him some company, the young man not picky so anyone would do just so long as they could hold his interest for more than a nanosecond. That was not an easy task while Theo was drinking, his mind was starting to wonder and ponder thoughts about some ladies in the room that would land him hot water very quickly.

"What to do? What to do?" he thought looking at pair of ladies, one of which ordered a sex on the beach.
"Those two are quite the lookers ... if only I could manage to get of my ass and engage them ... come on Theo you can do it. No ... no ... nope ... negative ... no ... two off them is too much ... not like Jack." Theo thought swinging around facing the bar again, quickly downing half his drink. At this point Theo was very pleased he could handle his drink very well, sure at this point some would be an utter mess.

"Wow. You're really a girl Ashton? It's really hard to tell. I thought you were just a tall pretty boy." The girl who got harassed spoke up, newly discovered her name was Jessie. Sitting. In between Ashton and her friend, Kary.

Ashton sighed with a soft smile, minorly pouting at the fact as she nodded in confirmation. Glancing to her friend Marine as the auburn haired girl laughed and giggled, cheeks slightly flushed from the alcohol. "Yeah. Pretty sweet. Pretty fun to take advantage of it too." she mused as she took another gulp of alcohol.

"Really? How so?" one of the guys by the name of Jared spoke up curiously.

Marine grinned a little as her blue eyes flicked over the bar. "See how many are fooled by it. Specially fun at bars. Hey Ash, see any cute girls?" Marine asked, glancing to her tall friend.

Ashton blinked curiously before doing another scan of the bar. Mostly all the girls here were cute, besides herself in her opinion. She spotted the two girls at the bar again, a brunette and a blonde. They were pretty cute, the blonde was especially pretty like a porcelain doll.@Knight of Doom as well as the girl who spoke to her earlier. White hair and red eyes, almost exotic and too pretty to be touched.@sakurasan Honestly, there were quite a few beauties tonight.

"Mhmm is Ash into girls?" Kary questioned curiously.

Ashton blinked and curiously looked at Mary, minorly confused at the question and not fully understanding it. Marine just shrugged in response and gave a exaperated sigh. "She just likes looking at them. Says that it's because their the opposite of her. Even if she's a cutie in her own way. Otherwise, Ashton isn't much of a romantic. If I recall, she hasn't dated once in her life. Just rather be friends with everyone." the auburn haired girl mused, causing the tall blonde to face palm with her left hand as the group of people chuckled.

"Must be hard if she doesn't talk to them. She hasn't said one word tonight." The other guy, named Mark, spoke up.

"Well I haven't ever heard Ash speak since we've known one another and that's been a couple years. Just isn't much of a talker I guess." Marine said before smirking devishly as she looked to Ashton, who slowly leaned away cautiously. Slowly raising her hands up with her index fingers out to form a cross, holding it in between her and the 'devil' conducting some plan.

"Soooo Ashy~ Lets play the flirt game~ Go pick a girl and see if you can fool them that you're a dude and get their number~ while we place bets on your progress, now that everyone here knows your situation." Marine smiled with a wide innocent smile.

Ashton's amethyst colored gaze narrowed, the corner of her lips twitching before she held up her arms and crossed them in front of her to form a solid 'X' and shook her head. Watching her friend roll her gaze and taking another sip of alcohol, Marine raised her fingers and flicked them against the tall blonde's nose which scrunched up.

"Oh don't be a baby. It's all in good fun. That's what most of these folks come here for anyway. Drink, pick up people, or sometimes just look for eye candy. Besides, people like being flirted with. It's like a compliment. Of course, you don't have too. But your drinking actual alcohol instead of water if you do." Marine spoke, her voice pretty much saying that there was no room for argument.

The tall blonde sighed again, dropping her arms before glancing around, rolling her eyes at the several snickers at their table before continuing. She didn't know why Marine always found this amusing but the blonde supposed it didn't hurt socializing with someone. Despite her friend's ill intentions.

Shizuka's words kept replaying in Vern's head for the rest of the day. Every idle moment meant hearing them again.
"You can't take care of other people unless you take care of yourself."
Had he bit off more than he could chew? Had he lost track of why he was working so hard? He wanted to make sure that his future wife would live without worry if he were to pass away young, like his father. That would be for nothing if he never lived long enough to marry. Still, the fact remained that he had responsibilities.

Three meetings and a quick sandwich for lunch made for a busy first part of the day. Then, he had to quietly rush to his other job, leading one of the maintenance teams that took care of the park for the city. There was a plumbing issue with a couple of the water fountains and he had to pull out a good part of his knowledge on the subject to get the job done. Even with three people under him, it still took all of five hours. He had instructed the others to handle the usual maintenance tasks while he took on the plumbing problem. Things worked out in the end but he only barely managed to finish the rest of the work by quitting time.

It had already been raining for awhile. He was soaked, first with sweat and then with rain. His crew had already finished and gone home. They had rides on muggy, wet days. Vern had gone around and priced vehicles but he had only recently found one suitable for his current needs. It was a scooter. It had also gotten a flat yesterday and wouldn't be ready for him to pick it up from the shop until morning.

So, he walked.

By the time he reached the bottom of the stairs that led up to his apartment, he was soaked through and had a good start on being chilled to the bone. He was also blinking owlishly to try and keep the world from blurring. He was tired, almost tired enough that he couldn't feel it. He was just starting to ache all over and his headache from the morning's paperwork hadn't gone away. He failed to notice the unfamiliar bike as he approached the stairs. He also didn't notice the young lady quietly standing just off to the side of the door to his apartment.

Then he noticed. His key was in his hand. water was dripping from the brim of his maintenance uniform cap. His uniform was soaked and muddy with a scattering of grass stains. Dripping wet work gloves hung out of his back pockets and his bare hands sported wrinkled fingertips from hours in the wet. It took a few long seconds before he could make his eyes keep her in focus long enough to recognize her.

Of all people to see him in this state, it just had to be Shizuka. The very person who had reminded him that he shouldn't push himself so hard during their talk that morning was standing outside his apartment under the awning that he had installed a couple months before with his briefcase in her hand. She looked wet. She also had the look of someone trapped by the rain.

Vern remembered his key and his manners in roughly the same moment, inserting the key into the lock and opening the door before clearing his throat and motioning for her to enter. His hands were shaking.

"Shizuka, thank you for bringing that over. Please, come in and warm up." He said. His voice was so soft that it barely carried the few feet between them. "I'll make some tea." He walked inside and removed his soaking wet work boots by the door, walking in wet socks to the small kitchen where he began heating a kettle and pulling tea down from a cupboard.

The apartment was designed like a studio with a bedroom and bathroom being the only rooms that had any actual walls. The rest was open concept and there were tile floors by the entrance, the kitchen, and the bathroom. The rest was wood. It had the decorative distinction of actually looking easy to clean. That is, it had nothing else to recommend it due to being empty of anything resembling a lived-in feeling. The kitchen was the notable exception. All over it were signs of knowledge and pride. The dishes were perfectly maintained and in good order. The spices were widely varied and well organized. The counters were largely uncluttered and only sported a couple of necessary appliances. The cupboards were made of good quality wood with a moderate finish and there was no sign of disturbance in the ones that were open.

One of those cupboards was the recipient of Vern's labored attention. The label on one tin of tea was proving hard to read. He tried to pull it into focus and it kept slipping back out again. He stepped away from the counter to set the tin down and get one of the stools from the small kitchen table. It was about then that everything went black and he fell to the floor with a muffled thud on the tile.

@Stern Algorithm

The small bar had managed to attract quite a crowd, but Reiji didn’t mind the rush as it kept him busy. And he would take being busy over standing around, bored out of his mind, any day. But when some guy with far too much money on his hands offered to buy a round for everyone, he found himself having to stifle a nervous gulp. ’You are the one that hates slow nights,’ he reminded himself, not letting thoughts about the inevitable flood of orders get to him. Luckily, there seemed to be a brief calm before the storm, as if people couldn’t believe there was actually somebody that generous in the bar, which gave him time to notice the blondie from earlier waving him down.

From blondie’s uneasy expression and the brunette’s shit eating grin, it was quite obvious to him that the former was quite out of her comfort zone. It was ridiculously cute actually, especially when she turned bright red when she ordered her Sex on the Beach. A good natured smile quickly took up residence on his face as he watched her struggle through her request. ”I’ll have that right up, but first I’m going to need to see that mug shot of yours,” he said, holding his hand out for her ID. The guy had handled a number of fakes in his even wilder and more rambunctious days, so he was quite confident that the piece of plastic blondie had handed him was legitimate. Yet he couldn’t help but grow suspicious when her flirty friend didn’t offer him one, or even order a drink for that matter, so he resolved to keep an eye on her to make sure she didn’t end up drinking something she wasn’t supposed to. Not that he was in any position to judge, but still.

The former musician left the two to their gossip and hunted down the various bottles he would need. While not a fan of such a fruity concoction himself, Reiji was no stranger to making cocktails. Sure, he made a bit more of a show than was necessary with his gratuitous bottle flipping, but he didn’t see the harm in a little showmanship. It had been a long time since his antics had resulted in alcohol being wasted, which was an event he had gotten all sorts of hell for from Yuusuke. The cocktail got mixed slightly harder than was necessary as he had to dismiss all sorts of old thoughts that were fighting for his attention. He was here to work for god's sake, not be a reminiscent mess.

Despite his momentary distraction, Reiji felt like the cocktail had turned out nicely. The liquid gradually shifted from yellow to red as it traveled up the highball glass and was crowned with an orange slice at the top. Satisfied with his work, he brought the fruity abomination back to blondie, although her friend seemed to have vanished. ”I’ve got your Sex on the Beach right here,” he announced, looking her dead in the eye with the most charming face he could muster, doing his damnedest to get her to flush again. ”I hope it lives up to your expectations.”

Unfortunately, life wasn’t going to let him enjoy the fruits of his labor, as customers were already getting antsy over their free round of drinks. “Would you quit flirting and get me a vodka and Red Bull already?” some schmuck with blonde highlights shouted at him.

”Yeah, yeah, I'll have it out in a second," he shot back, regretfully having to turn his back on the blonde beauty to get back to work. "And I’ll see if I can find you a better taste in drinks while I’m at it.”

@Knight of Doom

Once Amaya handed her card to the bartender, she slid it back into its place in her wallet which was then returned to her purse. She took some time to calm down a bit from her embarrassment, watching as Rachel walked right up to her target and started flirting like it was nobody’s business. She usually got what she wanted some way or another, so she had learned the skill of wrapping people around her finger pretty quickly. Sighing, the blonde leaned back in her seat and watched her drink being made for a bit.

It seemed as though the redhead had quite a bit of tricks up his sleeve as he flipped the bottles in his hand. At one point she turned away, fearing that if she looked any more, he’d drop the bottles and get hurt from the shattered glass. Her gaze turned to her phone in order to at least look like she was actually doing something. Well, that and she also was anxious to see if anyone had replied to her emails that she sent about moving in with someone. Her heart leaped in joy when she saw that she had a reply. Quickly, she tapped on it only to be disappointed by the first two words.

“I’m sorry, but I was looking for a more permanent roommate and someone with a higher income. I hope you understand and happy hunting!”

Ugh, it seemed as though this person just wanted someone to pay more of the rent than they did. How selfish. Amaya made enough money to cover half of the expenses of the rent in that apartment, but apparently that hadn’t been enough. The first part was understandable, but the second just annoyed her.

Just as she put her phone away, her drink came. It was actually kinda pretty. The smooth transition of colors was amazing, how do they even do that? Of course the attractive bartender had to repeat the drink’s name, while looking her straight in the eyes. The awkward girl could feel her stomach tighten, and her face flush once again. If only she could control that kind of thing!

“Thank you,” She made sure to thank him with a small grin, however her voice was overshadowed by someone else demanding his presence. Wait, did he just say flirting? Amaya’s eyes went a bit wide before hiding the majority of her face by resting her chin in both her hands. That way not many could see her blush even harder. Once the bartender was well away, the red faced girl took a sip of the cocktail. It...wasn’t too bad. However, she had never been good with alcohol, so she made sure to pace herself and restrict her consumption to one drink. In order to give her mind something else to think about, Amaya turned to see Rachel trying to convince the same guy she had started with to give her a sip of his drink. She was pretty darn close to him, a proximity that would cause her own brain to shut down.

@Sarcelle Renard(@Evil Snowman kinda since Rachel's flirting with Jack)

Amber light soared past in a blur against the darkened asphalt of Shine City Junction, street lights phasing through the night as the howl of a summer breeze was muffled underneath the roaring engine of his bike. It was a beautiful night for a ride, or at least that was what Micheal J. Blade thought as he weaved through traffic, navigating the twisted and convoluted highways of the City. The roads were full, as they often were in the evenings in which Club LUSH opened for it's nightly escapades of sex and suds, with a gratuitous amount of neon thrown into the mix for shits and giggles. He hate going there; the sort of individuals that lurked there were generally the unsavory, plus the manager was a total fucking prick.

Blade gripped the handles of his motorcycle tighter, the teal fingerless biking gloves enveloping his hands squeaking as he narrowed his eyes behind the tinted visor of his helmet. Nothing was going to interrupt this night of his; time was money, and that was no exception for the city's courier service. The hours were late, the job was thankless, but damn if he didn't love it regardless. It allowed him to get away from the nonsense and the noise; it allowed him time to clear his head and just think. Although it didn't really bother him much, it was a lonely drive as the evenings grew longer, with the dark sky, painted blue and blue, shifting into darker shades of night.

A dull ringing noise filled his helmet with the soft vibrations of the Bluetooth in his ear, the monotone voice of his phone alerting him where the next package had to be delivered.

Take a right at Frokane Street, then, make a sudden left at Diamond Avenue.

No later than the notification reach his ears, did the light connecting his turn shift to an angry crimson hue. Too far into the turn, the Biker couldn't do much more than shift his gears, the grit of the road kicking up underneath his wheels as he drifted into the other lane.

Fucking robot navigation system.

Revving up his bike, Martin jerked his grip back, the front end of the vehicle following suit as he now sped down the road on nothing but his rear wheel.

It continued like this for but a few moments before he pushed it back down; it wouldn't be good if he had gotten a ticket.

Glancing upwards, he pulled up to the side of the curb, his helmet vibrating as the voice droned it's message.

Arrived at destination.

Micheal hitched his bike, kicking up the stand as he gave the establishment a quick once over.

It was a bar of some sort, the sign out front declaring that it was opening night.

First round was free.

Good for the guy who owned the place.

Walking up to the doors, Blade practically shoved them open, a parcel in one hand as his other propped open the entrance; he didn't even bother flipping up his visor, despite the dimness.

There was quite the cast in here.

Namely the big guy(girl?) in the corner, the pair of white haired folks somewhere else, and plenty more.

Regardless, he wasn't here for pleasure, but he might as well grab a cold one while he was here.

Sauntering up to the counter, he all but tossed the package on to the counter, grunting at the red-haired bartender as he held out the electronic device for him to be signed.

@Dynamo Frokane

Yutaro's night was going fairly uneventfully so far. Of course, a ditzy blond who had no idea how to play the game was the big winner of the night thus far, walking away with triple her buy-in and a handsome young man on her arm who insisted she accompany him for the rest of the night for "good luck." Of course it was a rather transparent ploy for him to get lucky, but such things happened all the time and had stopped being interesting long ago. What was interesting was the new face that approached his table. The man had confidence in his gait, and Yutaro could tell just by how naturally he took a seat at the table that he was no stranger to the game. And yet he hadn't seen this man frequent the casino before. It's not as if his features were so generic as to be forgettable; no, Yutaro made it a point to remember his customers' faces. Perhaps he was new in town, and new people were always interesting.

However, there was something a bit more than just novelty about this man. Yes, Yutaro could see it in his eyes; this stranger was checking him out. Although the dealer most definitely preferred the company of women, there was only one correct response for a businessman in this situation: he put on his most charming smile. "No need to worry sir," Yutaro said, giving a light chuckle. "Feel free to bet however much you feel comfortable with, and stay as long as you like. Have one of our bunnies bring you a drink. The bar can make just about anything." Yutaro didn't mind at all if the stranger wanted to bet slow and steady. The longer he played, the more likely statistics would take over and he would end up paying the house for his drinks. Also, people tended to get scared off by a big loss, and were more likely to ignore a steady trickle of loss in the house's favor. He would play this man's game all night long.

The stranger seemed to be the sociable type, so Yutaro decided to make a little small talk as he dealt out the cards. "A man worried about how the world perceives him eh? I'd say you were a politician, but you're too up front and honest about that. Are you on TV?" Yutaro didn't expect to be right, and would probably impress himself more than his new friend if he was right. But it was a fun way to break the ice. Playing a guessing game was certainly a bit more interesting than the generic "so, what do you do for a living" question.

Megaera Kastrati

There were certain questions a merc had to answer, now and then. Where did I hide the body? I hid the body right? The body isn't going to give away my position right? Oh god it gave away my position.

Wait did I leave some C4 on the body? I did didn't I? Do I have detonator? Okay how awesome am I?

....should limbs even fly that high?

Question like that truly defined a merc's existence, but other, less pressing questions had their place as well. Questions like does the fact the Akio was hot as anyone outside combat fatigues and isn't currently punching someone can be make up for the fact the was here for foam night? And that be was one of *those* party goers who ruined the fine art of hauling drunks out of the bathroom for everyone else?

....Well. Imagining him with an assault rifle, combat fatigues and laying someone out with a round house had answered that question, and had made Kastrati quite thankful his finely honed sense of self control.

.....Alright so maybe he'd dealt with it by throwing someone into a dumpster. Accidentally. When he'd been escorting them off the premises. It was still dealt with. That was what mattered.

So now he could focus on other things-like weaving his way through a heap of writhing, dancing bodies that had the audacity to call itself a dance floor as he kept his eye out for troublemakers.

And did his best to drown out the music with an ipod, an earbud and copious amounts of metal. The results were mixed. But promising! The stranger sorts of metal always were.

Hm.

A small smile crawled onto Kastrati's face. It was a nasty, lopsided, mercenary thing. It was about time to check the bathrooms again, wasn't it?

It had been awhile... since Ryoki had made her way to the casino at night. The lights that passed her by as she made her way to Upscale Heights were all so familiar. The city really was seemless; it always changed, yet many aspects would forever stay the same. Her shift change allowed her to get one of the earlier shifts, in order to keep her job, whilst also limiting her service. She liked the casino job - loved it, even. She liked serving the lovely patrons there and having them spend all their money on her exclusively; she loved it because of how good she was at it, and how awesome the staff were. Most of the time in public she had to dress or act decently, at the very least when around fans. When she came here, she was free - she could do things in a fun and friendly manner, and could throw around sexual banter and joke with those there and just have a good time overall.

It was fun. But tonight, she was a little anxious.

She wondered if some of her favourite clients would remember her. She wondered if some of the staff, even, would remember her. She knew the boss would. After all, he was the one who presented her with the amazing oppotunity of working early, until she was ready to return to the later time. Would things be the same? Would they be different? Would she enjoy it there, or not? All these questions buzzed around in her head, and she almost fell from not keeping her mind in check.

'You gotta stay focused, Ryoki,' the Raven told herself mentally, 'don't let these thoughts bring you down. Do what Mimiko said: you need to revive. You need to do this, because it won't change anything moping for eternity... Thank you, Mimiko, Kyle... Thank you very, very much.'

With newfound confidence, Ryoki marched onwards toward the Casino, her thoughts occupied about what she would do rather than what could possibly happen. However, there was one thing that she couldn't quite figure out how to approach. She knew she needed to do this approach, true, but she didn't know how in the Hell she was going to... follow up. How to get the ball rolling, as they say.

'Yutaro...'

She shook her head and took a great big breath of fresh air. Whatever would happen tonight would happen, both between the two of them and as a whole. More than anything, she wanted to apologise for how rude she'd been this past couple of months, locking herself away from anyone and anything. The Raven hadn't really spoken to anyone in the past couple of months, and she felt bad about it. She needed to fix things, to remind the world she was ready to push forward again, no matter how hard it would be, and that she was ready.

... Well, mostly.

'No, no 'mostlys' or 'maybes'; it's either I am or I'm not. I am ready. Don't doubt yourself, girl, just do what you can and do it to the best of your ability. It's OK to cry, but I will not make myself useless for others.'

With a quick, light slap to the face, Ryoki found herself turning on to the casino's road. With a grin she begins jogging down the road, until she finally arrives at the flashy front entrance. Her eyes light up as she reads the casino's neon name in big, bold letters up front, and the dark-haired femme fatale began making her way around the side, then towards the back as she locates one of the staff entrances. She still held some small amounts of doubt in the back of her mind, however, with one gulp of courage, she blocks out that remaining doubt and walks through the door...

---

"You're the best boss I've ever had, and I can't thank you enough! Seriously, I would kiss you, but it might make some of the players jealous, teehee!"

"Ahaha! Well, I'm sure nobody would find out! Go on!" The Boss stuck out his face and made fish lips, before immediately laughing and returning to his position in the comfortable leather chair, reclining. "But really, there was no way I wouldn't help out any of you beautiful ladies with work. Honestly, you, Rios, Blatter and Yume are some of the best bunny girls I've ever had - you lot alone have made profits for this casino go through the roof time and again with your work, and each new and inventive idea you lot bring to the table always seems to help us out! Giving you an early, short shift and break was the least I could do."

Ryoki smiles and bows again. "Really, thank you so much, Boss! I'm happy to be back on my old shift again."

"I know you are, darling, and thank you for staying with us even though you've been going through some trouble. Remember, if you start to feel unwell you can always call it a ni-"

"I think I'll be OK, Boss.' Ryoki states with a smile, staring at the ground shyly. "I was recently reminded of something... very important that I'd forgotten. I want to make myself useful again. Well, more useful. I want to help out at the casino, and-"

"See Yutaro~? Eh~?" The Boss asks with a wink, before proceeding into a light chuckle.

"W-well... Y-yeah..." Ryoki stammers nervously, blushing a deep shade of red as she fiddles with her thumbs. "But I'm also excited to get back with the girls, too! And the customers! But... yeah, I'm looking forward to cheering up the Grumpy Cat, ehehe!"

The boss nods and smiles a nice, genuine smile. "Well, on that note, are you ready to head out?" As he asks, Ryoki looks up. One look at the intensity in her eyes was enough of a response for him. "Good. I look forward to seeing you in action again, Miss Mochizukki. Get out there and make us proud!"

"Yes sir!"

However, just before she walked out, the Boss called for her.

"I just wanted to say... that's a very nice ribbon."

"Oh... Thank you!" She giggles and walks out. 'And now... we begin.'

---

She'd forgotten how busy things could get at the casino on a Saturday night. Always on the move, Ryoki's stamina, speed and skill were all tested as she served with all the other bunny girls, providing drinks and eye candy services all for quite a profit. It felt good to finally be back again. The welcome was extremely warm - all the men (and a couple of the ladies) whom she used to serve regularly gave one, big birthday-like cheer together upon learning of her return, which pretty much got her to be the center of attention for the night. And she was loving it.

Whenever she could spare her attention, Ryoki found herself glancing toward the blackjack tables to see if she could spot her favourite dealer. She caught sight of him a few times, however she was uncertain of whether he had seen her, or heard of her return. She had to make her presence known. A nice, long chit-chat could wait until after work or, at the very least on break, however she wanted to make her presence known to him before that happened. She wanted to see his smile, and show him she was OK.

One time, as she was passing by from a distance, she saw that he was with... a very curious Jamaican-looking fellow. Intrigued by this, she moved a little closer in order to eavesdrop on the duo, keeping out of Yutaro's line-of-sight because... well, because she was a little nervous.

"-so I'll be keeping the stakes low while there is still a crowd, I'll rack it up when they start to disperse later in the night. Are you willing to be patient and deal me till late tonight? You sorta look like you could use the company..."

Ooh, not wanting to spend money, 'ey? Well... Ryoki could definitely do something about that. The question was if she was willing to take Yutaro's target, swoop in for the kill, and reap the reward? It was tempting, and it would allow the two to converse for a little while - let Yutaro know she was there. But was she up for it?

"No need to worry sir. Feel free to bet however much you feel comfortable with, and stay as long as you like. Have one of our bunnies bring you a drink. The bar can make just about anything."

Well after hearing that it was impossible to refuse. Taking a deep breath, she began walking over to the blackjack table.

"Did somebody say 'drinks'?" She asks, notepad in hand as she came into direct view of Yutaro, leaning over the table for the customer and giving him... something to look at. "Or perhaps it was the bunny herself you were after~? Teehee~!" Her seductive tone hadn't changed a bit. She was still just as good as when she'd first joined the casino crew, her skill managing to keep up despite recent events. She flashes Yutaro a quick smile -- a joyous and genuine smile that said "I'm back~!" all on it's own -- before returning her attention to this interesting customer. She was relieved.

'Objective: Complete.'

"Shizuka, thank you for bringing that over. Please, come in and warm up." He said. His voice was so soft that it barely carried the few feet between them. "I'll make some tea." He walked inside and removed his soaking wet work boots by the door, walking in wet socks to the small kitchen where he began heating a kettle and pulling tea down from a cupboard.

The apartment was designed like a studio with a bedroom and bathroom being the only rooms that had any actual walls. The rest was open concept and there were tile floors by the entrance, the kitchen, and the bathroom. The rest was wood. It had the decorative distinction of actually looking easy to clean. That is, it had nothing else to recommend it due to being empty of anything resembling a lived-in feeling. The kitchen was the notable exception. All over it were signs of knowledge and pride. The dishes were perfectly maintained and in good order. The spices were widely varied and well organized. The counters were largely uncluttered and only sported a couple of necessary appliances. The cupboards were made of good quality wood with a moderate finish and there was no sign of disturbance in the ones that were open.

One of those cupboards was the recipient of Vern's labored attention. The label on one tin of tea was proving hard to read. He tried to pull it into focus and it kept slipping back out again. He stepped away from the counter to set the tin down and get one of the stools from the small kitchen table. It was about then that everything went black and he fell to the floor with a muffled thud on the tile.

When Vern invited her inside, Shizuka initially refused out of habitual etiquette, "Th-thank you, but I wouldn't want to impose..." However, she was mostly just trying to process what she was seeing: he was dressed in workman's clothing that looked heavily used and his voice sounded quite weak, causing her to wonder what he did outside of being the owner for Ink Sparks. Of course, Vern didn't take no for an answer, or perhaps he didn't hear her since she was too stunned to speak loudly, and continued into his kitchen to prepare the tea he had offered. Seeing as she had no intention to bike home in the rain, her refusal was for all intents and purposes rather empty, so she let herself follow him in. "P-pardon the intrusion," she said, mostly to mitigate appearing rude by accepting his hospitality too eagerly.

But before she had gotten much further past the door, she heard a sudden thud followed by uncomfortable silence. Taking her shoes off in a hurry, Shizuka rushed to the kitchen to find Vern laying on the floor, unconscious. She quickly knelt down and checked his pulse and breathing. Though no expert in first aid, she had done enough veterinary training to know the basics. She was relieved to note that his vitals were good, though he seemed to have a mild fever. Shizuka flipped his body over to sit him up, then reached under his armpits with her arms in order to raise him, dragging Vern to his bed. He was heavier than she was, but not to the point where she couldn't pull him given the proper posture. Once on the bed, she moved his limbs around so that he lay comfortably and dragged his blanket over him. Shizuka went a bit further by looking through his closet for spare blankets that she could layer on top of him. Once that was done, she went into Vern's bathroom and wet a small towel with cold water and placed it on his forehead. She looked to see if he was settled or if he showed signs of pain. It occurred to her that she probably should have just called an ambulance as soon as she found him on the floor, but a motherly instinct had kicked in. She decided that she would continue this course of action, but would keep an eye out for worsening symptoms and call an ambulance the moment things seemed to be outside of her control or experience.

Now she headed into the kitchen and looked around, impressed by the care Vern seemed to take in it. First she found a bag of rice, pouring some out into a pot she found, filling the pot with water and began boiling it to make porridge. She took out some salt, pepper, and vinegar, and looked for some light foods like pickled vegetables to go with it. She also took out an egg that she would poach in the porridge right before the porridge was ready.

Shizuak wandered between the kitchen and Vern, alternating between checking up on him and the meal she was preparing.

---

Thirty minutes later and Calliope felt like the line had barely moved at all.

She was trying her best to be patient because from what she understood random outbursts of aggression were frowned upon in most places (Unless she was hitting the punching bag at the gym, in which case most humans seemed to to encourage that sort of behavior. How Odd.) but she was struggling to restrain irritated growls. There were not many things that she hated more than standing around idly, and to have to do so next to other pushy, rowdy club goers was her idea of hell. ’Why did I think this would be a good idea?’ she mused as she finally got up to the front of the line.

“Hello,” she greeted the bouncer without looking at him, digging through her pockets until her fingers finally brushed across the smooth surface of her driver’s license. “I’m just supposed to hand this to you, ri--oh,” Calliope stopped as she looked up, her head tilting back almost comically far so she could look up into the face of her running mate from this morning. “It’s you! Hello,” she started again, a little more warmly this time. “I hope the rest of your run went more smoothly than the first part,” she joked lamely as she extended her arm to hold her ID out for him to take.

“My name is Calliope,” she told him, even though he could plainly see it printed across the top of her driver’s license. “Like the greek muse. Or the circus instrument, depneding on who you ask. My mother had a, um...,” the blue eyed girl paused to scratch at her nose while she tried to figure out how to word it. “...interesting sense of humor.” Her gaze flitted down to the pile of destroyed IDs at the big man’s feet. Why was he tearing some of them up? Hopefully he wouldn’t do that to her’s, the line at the DMV was so dreadful it would surely cause her to malfunction.

“Excuse me!” A platinum blonde girl with a dark tan exclaimed, tangling her manicured nails through the ends of Calliope’s hair and giving the strands a quick yank. “Your hair is sooooooooo pretty, girlfriend! Is it, like, um, natural or something?”

“Stop that, please!” the vet student grumbled, swatting at the other woman’s hands and hitting them just hard enough to get the point across. She didn’t mind randomly being petted, that was sort of nice, but she had no patience for hair pulling. “...and no ma’am, this is not my hair’s natural state.” Calliope tried to keep her face schooled so she did not offend the handsy stranger, but her eye still ended up twitching slightly. Had she honestly thought she had been born with blue hair?

Did that actually happen? Calliope didn’t think so, but maybe there had been advancements in genetic technology? She’d have to research it once she got back home.

The other woman wrinkled her nose up at her like maybe she had been rude and since Calliope wasn’t really sure what else to do about it she turned back to the large ginger man guarding the door and waited for him to speak.

@Saarebas

@Knight of Doom

Ashton rested her head in her hands as her eyes continued to scan the crowd. A bead of sweat slightly dripping down her right temple as she tried to decide who to exactly 'pursue' as Marine would put it. More like trick but it's not like Ashton ever lies about her gender. Just everyone takes a guess about it. Not many believe a girl could actually get this tall and usually treat such girls as a freak of nature. Even now she was probably close to the tallest person in the bar.

"Well I say go for that cute blonde over there. Her friend just left so that's a good time to hit that. She looks out of place, perfect target for flirting. Noobs are either the easiest or the hardest depending how you play your cards. But since the 'white knight in shining armor' type it'll be fine to play the nice Schick. Be easy and simple, let her have a couple sips of that drink to let her mind get a little hazy and you should be good. Think the albino girl already figured out your a girl so she's out." Marine said as she also assessed the available playmates to torment with her little game.

"How can you tell?" Kary asked curiously.

"Gut feeling. Plus people tend to act differently depending on the gender of the other person. Most girls probably would be intimidated by a giant 'guy' beside her. Then again, this is Ash. Might as well be a giant golden retriever." Marine mused.

Ashton blinked at her auburn haired comrade before glancing toward the pretty blonde. Indeed, her friend had left to flirt with a guy. Still though, her amethyst gaze flicked to the other bartender, the one that hadn't served her. Before looking to Marine with a raised eyebrow and slowly tilting her head in his direction. Flicking her eyes between that direction and Marine to let her comrade know that the bartender seemed interested in the blonde. Wasn't there like some guy code... bro code? Something. About not taking some guy's girl that he has his eyes on or something? She really would not hurt his feelings or cause drama.

Marine rolled her eyes as she waved her hand dismissively. "Oh please Ash. All is fair in love and war and all that. Doesn't matter how many people flirt with the target, it's up to the target who they find the most attractive. The losers get to snooze and lose. And if they are the sore loser type, well just knock their teeth in. You probably could with any of them here." Marine said confidently while Ashton gave a skeptical look before another sigh.

The dirty blonde didn't want to cause a fight though. She much rather avoid having to use such violence for little importance like some bar drama. She just did it to that guy because he attacked her, and seemed like the violent kind of drunk and probably would just hurt someone. It was action for safety of the patrons of the bar. This however was like some weird sick mind game Marine seemed very pleased to witness.

Turning her gaze to the blonde, Ashton tried to think of a approach, while the others whispered their bets.

"Bet you two drinks she can't do it."

"Betcha five she can."

Alright so, how does one get ones attention at a bar? Ashton could just imagine thought bubbles that appeared in anime or manga. Imagining one image in a bubble with her and a bouquet of roses. Petals flittering about like some prince charming fantasy as she gave a princely smile. Crossing her arms and tilting her head in minor confusion and calculation at the thought, she thought of another one. Her with a box of chocolates shaped like a heart, gingerly taking a bite of one of the chocolates. Attempting to be seductive she supposed. Shaking her head quickly to clear away the thought bubbles, she sighed again. No no, they were in a bar. There's no roses or chocolates to fall back on. Mhmm maybe just offering to buy a drink is enough for the scenario? Seems to work in movies.

.... Sometimes.

Deciding to go with the simple, as well as be herself. After all, she wasn't going to exactly lie who she was and pretend to be someone else just to impress someone. Honesty is the best policy. So if they ask her gender, she'll answer. Simple. No fault in girls flirting with girls. Just adds to the compliment. Right. Taking a deep reassuring breath, the tall giant stands from the table before striding over to the blonde girl. Grabbing the stool right next to the beauty before turning her amethyst gaze to the 'doll' and gave a bright friendly smile. Gingerly wiggling the stool to make a sound to catch her attention. Gesturing with her free hand toward it, trying to ask if she could sit there beside the beautiful woman.

Enter, enter, enter, reject, enter, enter, enter, failed bribe and reject, enter, enter, enter. The job of a bouncer gets more repetitive as the night goes on and on nights as popular as this the sea of faces start to blend together into one big scantily cladded blur. "Just a few more hours then yo' clock out." The towering redhead reassured himself as he turned away another disappointed student and added yet another fake idea to the bin next to his feet. Arty never understood all the excitement over LUSH's foam nights, to him it was soggy clothes and foam in your drink. "Damn, I must be gettin' old." Arty thought to himself with a slight smirk and a shake of his head.

Another dozen or so people either accepted or rejected and it didn't seem Arty's quitting time was coming anytime soon. It was about this time of evening that Arty started people watching and the blur of people slowly started to become individuals again. It was always interesting to see what people wore to foam night, there were people showing up in regular street clothes and apparently had no idea how ruined they would be by the end of the night, others in actual swimming trunks or swim suits, there was even a bloke who showed up in a scuba suit, and god was that a group of men in speedos that he just let in? It was moments like this that Arty remembered why it was good to treat the ocean of people as a blur, though the Irishman was able to get a good chuckle out of it.

With all the people coming his way Arty had completely forgotten about the brilliant blue dot that he had spotted in the crowd earlier, well that was until she was right in front of him. Just like her hair the young lady's outfit made her stand out in the crowd, she was the only one wearing a dress... well the only one wearing a dress that couldn't be argued was the size of a napkin. Arty couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle at the small look of surprise that came to her face once she recognized him. "It is good to see yo' too lass. My run went pretty smoothly, I just hope yo' managed to stay on yer feet for the yers." He joked back as he took the ID that she had offered him. It was obviously clear that it was real which Arty was pretty glad about, he would of hated to have to send such a nice girl off.

Calliope was her name huh? That was quite the... unique one. But Arty wasn't the one to judge, hell there was a reason he went by Arty and not Artair after all. "Well it is really nice to meet yo' lass, my friends call me Arty. He said as he offered her a warm smile and handed her back her ID. Just after that one of the other patrons of the line took it upon herself to get rather handsy with Calliope, taking what looked like a rather unpleasant handful of the lass's hair. Usually Arty would have to step in during these types of situations, he had been on the bad end of a lot of cat fights during his time working at LUSH, but it looked like Calliope was able to handle all on her own. Arty always respected someone who could end a conflict with out having to give someone a broken nose. He offered the girl another smile before he stepped aside, opening the way for her. "Have a great evenin' lass and if there is any trouble don't think twice about askin' me fer help." He finished in his usual jolly tone.

The tidal wave struck.

Soon after he gave his announcement the ambient noise in the small bar reached a crescendo. Scott rubbed his temples as he felt a headache begin to come. The din really got to him, being this was a blessing he was indeed thankful for, but he also longed to be holed up in a nice quiet little place with a couple of oldtimers as regulars. Regardless he was here now and his warm smile never faltered as he grabbed bottles and filled glasses with grace and efficiency. A few more idiot kids like this one and he'd be back to the level of what Grandpa had left him. Regardless he decided to head to a nice Japanese Restauraunt for lunch tomorrow. He certainly made enough tonight already to pay his employee's wage for the week and not have to worry about spending on food.

Speaking if his employee, he watched with bated breath as Reiji flipped and flourished the bottles of expensive alcohol in his hands as he poured their contents into a glass, making a cocktail he recognized as a Sex on The Beach. For as much of a heart attack the man was about to give him, Scott was so damn thankful that he applied a week ago. He shuddered to think about tackling tonights events by himself while he turned back to the lady he'd gotten an Adam for.

The strong liquor this woman downed absolutely blew him away. The slender silver haired girl did not look like the alcoholic she was, and judging by the fact that she opened a tab, he knew that there was even more in her. When he finished mixing the drink she ordered in front of her, he wrote down on a pad of paper the glass of Adam she'd ordered and the cocktail he served just now, leaving the pen for her to fill out any other order she made. Chuckling good naturedly as he remembered what she told him.

"If you drink this much on a good day, then how the hell do you function on a bad one?" He chided before moving on to another order. The maelstrom of patrons continued and he could catch glimpses of familiar faces here and there, he caught sight of the tall girl lumbering over through the storm, but couldn't follow with his eyes where she ended up. The doors slammed open and a mysterious looking biker fellow strode in like he owned the place before slinging a package over the bar. Scott had an idea of what it was, though he wasn't certain as he pushed Reiji aside to deal with the courier, taking the pen in hand and sloppily scrawling his signature on the digital interface. He flashed a crooked smirk to the biker before shouting "Thanks for that, can I get you anything?" over the din.

*POW* *POW* ACTION!

Ambience



Jason Maxwell Allen shot off the screen to reload, then aimed right back at the virtual enemy. Pulling the light gun's trigger.

*POW*

The screen flashed white for a brief second when he pulled the trigger, the next moment the digital goon spinned and fell, dead. He then quickly disappeared, and a soldier shot, taking one of Jason's lives.

Jason smirked, the arcade in Shine City always had the best light gun games around, at least in his opinion. The large room filled with noise of zombies growling, motorcycles' engines groaning, jet skis hitting ramps, and the sounds of cheerful laughter and people talking. It was a lot of noise, but when playing this game, he could block out all of it and just listen to the game.

The light gun Jason was holding was a light blue/cyan color, it looked like a specific real gun but Jason couldn't recognize it. It was very comfortable in his hands, he couldn't have passed this game without trying it.

The game was Time Crisis 4, Jason had never played a Time Crisis game before, but heard they were good and very recognizable because of it's cover mechanic.

*POW* *POW-POW P-POW*

MACHINE GUN

Jason was unloaded on every soldier he saw, with the rapid fire Machine Gun weapon. It only had 34 bullets left, so he switched back to his pistol and kept popping caps into virtual asses.

The game had two mechanics that not a lot of arcade light gun games would use. The first one is the cover mechanic, stepping on a pedal would take him out of cover, stepping off it would put him in cover and the ability to reload. The second one was being able to switch weapons.

It's not like there was different light guns for him to use to switch weapons, nor were they temporary power-ups. He could select a weapon with in a second. There was Pistol, a Machine Gun, a Shotgun, and a Grenade Launcher. They were all pretty effective, but only the Pistol had unlimited ammo.

A few people walked by and stopped, noticing how much he was into the game.

RELOAD!

Jason fired off screen to reload the handgun, then kept on blasting.

Honestly, he could stare here forever without one single complaint.

---

---

Mirei flinched upon hearing the bartenders comment. He's right... She sighed and took out her wallet. "I'll be leaving. Could I have my card back?" she asked him, her hand out. Taking the card, Mirei placed it back in her wallet and stood up. I really shouldn't drink anymore, should I... I don't function well when i'm drunk. She drank a mouthful of the delicious mixed drink and placed it back on the table, setting down $20 on the table for him to take. She didn't know how much it cost, but right now she didn't care.

Walking out of the bar and walking down the street. Lonely. She sighs, taking out her phone and glancing at the time. Still 9:50? She stopped in a deserted area and looked up at the sky. No one was around her. Lone- I'm bored. She walked home without anything particular in her mind. Just a set of thoughts that held no importance at the moment. How happy is the moon? Do the sun and the moon get along? How about the clouds and the sun? If they didn't like each other, that wouldn't be very good... They have to spend all that time together. At one point, she wondered what she was pondering over and looked at her heels as she walked.

Finally, she got home and closed her door gently behind her. Home. Home didn't feel like home. Home in Veriel Town didn't feel like home either. Even with her parents there when she got home. Home was something she never felt like it was. It never gave her that fuzzy feeling to be at home. Christmas. People always spoke about how much fun of a holiday is was going to be. It wasn't ever fun. Every Christmas, her parents usually had some sort of business party to attend. Even if they were at home, arguments would arise. "Why didn't you get me anything?!" "You always look down on me!" BAM! Mirei falls to the ground, shivering. Her mother was always quiet after her dad hit her. She never said anything.

<flashback>
"Mommy, do you love daddy?"

The first time she asked her this, it was probably the first time her mothers expression showed... confusion.

"Of course I do. That's why we're together."

That's the reason? Love? That's...Weird. Confusing. Complicated. Scary.

"Now go get ready for your violin performance Mirei."

"Yes ma'am."
<flashback end>

Mirei looks at her hands and finds that they're shaking. This is why you shouldn't drink and be alone afterwards. Why would you go home, you idiot? She sighs and slowly stands up. I need to go out. Mirei takes off her dress, undoing the back and heading into the bathroom. A large mirror. Far too large. An unnecessary size. She lifts her hair up, revealing a scar on the back of her neck that looked like an X. Staring at it with a blank expression, Mirei lets go of her hair and allows it to comfort her with its warmth. She then washes her face, taking off all of the make up. Wiping her face from the expensive cosmetics that she didn't even like to wear. Why did she even start using makeup? Oh yeah, expectations.

Looking up at the mirror, the only detectable difference was the disappearance of the black wing that was over her eye before. Her hands were dangling, water dripping down to the soft rug that was in the bathroom. Slowly, she lifts her hands and..

SLAP!

Mirei can feel the sting on her cheeks as she snaps herself out of whatever it was that she was in. You know what, this isn't right. I really need to go out. She heads out of the restroom in her bra and shorts, shuffling through her closet. Dresses, skirts, blah, blah, blah. She pulls out a cute bunny top that was made out of comfortable fabric and an even cuter over sized bunny cardigan. She still had her shorts on but due to her long top and cardigan, it wasn't visible. She looked different than usual. Her face looked the same but her clothes were a contrast to the dresses that she usually wore. Well, she was comfortable. She put on a light amount of makeup and lipgloss that would make people think "Why even bother wearing it?"

With that, she put her smaller wallet in her pocket and grabbed her key. That was all she needed right now. She took a look in the Shine City map and looked for places that were open right now. Restaurant... not hungry right now. Bar... Just left the place. Arcade...? She'd never been to an arcade before. There was no photo provided except for the logo of the place. She placed her photo on the page and dragged it over to the address. Close by. Open. What would it be like? Video games weren't allowed in her home and there were zero arcades near her home. They called it "useless and a waste of time when you could spend that valuable time studying and learning more about the world.". Now she had to try it. She smiled and memorized the name of the place. Only about 16 minutes away. Mirei left her room after pulling on a pair of comfortable boots. Slamming the door closed and flinching once she realized that people around were probably asleep. "Sorry..." she whispers to no one at all. There was no one in the halls as she went down in the elevator.

A cab was easy to get even though it was already 10:00pm. "Going out this late, pretty lady? Where to?" she smiled at the friendly man before saying "Lancom Arcade." Looking out the window, the night lights were alluring. She stared out the window the entire time, admiring the lights and the people in colorful clothes, most likely headed to the club. Once they were there, she snapped out of it and said thank you, handing him the required amount of money plus a tip. "Have a good night!" he yelled, driving off into the night.

Mirei looked up at the arcade. Entering the place, her eyes went wide. All of the interesting arcade games. There were barely any people in the place. Perhaps only her and 4 others, including the worker. She looked at one person @Chaotic Chao in the arcade that was playing a shooting game. The game seemed too complicated for her. A beginner should start off with something simple... Red hair. Red hair is nice. Mirei went over to a pacman game and starred at it. Lifting her hands and clicking a button, expecting something to happen.

Wh-wha... How do I do this?

She clicked on the buttons a few more times before finding a money slot. Mirei began putting a quarter in the slot, flinching when there was a sound and taking a little step back. She took a step forward and clicked on the buttons. Mirei was pretty sure that she was about to die. How do I move? Am I supposed to go towards the little things or away from i- Ah! It ate me!? "Wha..." she muttered, clicking on the buttons again and ignoring the joystick because... it looked like some sort of weird... device that should only be used for special attacks or something. So, Mirei continued dying. Over and over. Putting the quarters back in as it ate up her money at a rapid speed.

---

Soon enough, Jason ran out of lives. Swearing almost loudly, he placed the gun back into it's holster while the game asked CONTINUE? 18,17,16,15,14,13,12,11,10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1: GAME OVER Jason as he walked around for a new game to play, he noticed a girl with a bunny top. @sakurasan In curiosity, he walked over to her to see what she was playing and how good she was it. He admits, he's a little nosy, but she seemed well, interesting.

"Hey, Pacman much?" He asked, smiling. It was funny to him that someone could be so bad at a easy game like Pacman. He walked to the Pacman machine right next to her. For some reason, the Arcade always had the same arcade next to each other. For people that want to play the same game, he guessed? He slipped a token in and instantly started playing.

"Want some help with that?" He asked her, raising an eyebrow while she still hasn't gotten to concept. It was obvious she had never played a game before.

The little intro tune played when Jason had pressed the start button. He instantly started out-thinking the ghosts, getting pellets and looking for power-ups. Soon enough, he got to one and almost instantly, the ghosts turned blue with fear. He always liked to think that they were terrified.

He always wondered what the A.I. in video games thought, could they even think, did they work on instinct?

Concentrate, Jay. He thought.

He then stopped playing the game, and let the ghosts get him 1, 2, and 3 times. "Did you see the way I played?" He asked the girl, staring at the arcade cabinet she was playing, then glancing back at her.

Someone needs to seriously teach this woman. He thought.

---

“Arty,” Calliope parroted back, retrieving her driver’s license and re-pocketing it quickly. It was a nice name, it suited him well. The tall redhead stepped out of her way and shot her a charming grin before ushering her inside. She returned the gesture with a nervous smile of her own, took a deep breath, and stepped over the threshold.

The second she was through the door the blue haired woman realized what a truly horrible mistake she had made. It was almost pitch black inside except for the dance floor, which was lit by the occasional neon strobe light, complete with a shirtless, dreadlocked man hopping around like a madman on stage while he DJed away. Calliope turned around and was ready to bolt but had to stop when she realized that it was an entrance only door. ’How in God’s green earth do you get out of this place!?’ she thought, eyes darting around frantically for an exit.

That's when she realized that there were bubbles everywhere, flooding from the dance floor and seeping into the main bar area. ’What is happening here? Is this some kind of hedonistic ritual!?’ she continued her mental ramblings, gasping and jumping back when she accidentally stumbled into a couple who were very vocally making out. The music that was blaring from the speakers was fast paced and had high-pitched squeaking vocals the crooned out the lyrics at an unnatural timbre.

“Right,” she said to no one in particular, her voice drowned out by the heavy bass and synthetic beats. “I need a drink then.”

By the time she made her way to the bar, she had suds in her hair and her dress was starting to soak through. Calliope found an empty stool and plopped down, waving down the pretty bartender. “Can I get a moscow mule?” She asked, scowling when she realized her seat was damp and now so was her butt.

This place was the worst. When the zombies inherited the earth hopefully they’d destroy Club LUSH first.