tampered | Log ; Complete

Log ; Complete

When; October 2 | evening
Rating; PG-13? Because Faye has a mouth and likes to use it?
Characters; Kyouraku Shunsui {

pink_hurricane} & Faye Valentine {

glock30}
Summary; Because going out for drinks just after a proverbial water-to-wine curse is the best laid plan. And, contrary to popular belief, some promises are meant to be kept.
Log;

She'd had better ideas before in her time.

Honestly, even Faye herself was hesitant to believe that agreeing to a drink after such an... exceptional curse day was a poor plan. With the way she was feeling now, the only reaction alcohol was likely to get out of her was a stomach lurch and a quick trip to the ladies' room just at the mention of it. Not that it had ever deterred her from making a point before, and Faye's point to make here was that she wasn't about to let a little hangover stop her from being treated just the way she should have been.

After all, good-looking girls like her were supposed to be treated to these kinds of pleasantries every once and a while, so she was hardly at fault. At least that was what she kept telling herself as she sank into one of the chairs outside of Pandora's, plopping her chin in her hand and glancing around, eyes hidden behind large, dark glasses despite the fact that the sun was nowhere to be found.

Faye could hardly help it if every little flash of light felt like a stab to her retinas and her brain consequently, now could she? Ditto on the way the chair was making her back feel, and her stomach was still rumbling, and her brain felt like it was sloshing in about four inches of beer and--

Ugh, just where was this guy, anyway?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Kyouraku Shunsui kept his promises. Except if he was drunk...or if it was related to work. ...Okay, maybe he had to admit he wasn't that great at keeping all promises. However, when it came to the ladies, Shunsui liked to keep his word.

It's been over a month, hasn't it?...Yare yare...I'm really slipping lately...

Sure, he had had a lot to deal with after coming to this strange world; two major fights, some nasty curses, and of course the usual distractions that came with being Ukitake's lover. But he could only excuse himself so much...ladies were not to be kept waiting.

Keeping that in mind, Shunsui tried his best to be on time to all his meetings with pretty women, but seeing as how he had never taken to keeping a watch, this often resulted in failure.

Walking up to Pandora's, he spotted the particular lady he was looking for this evening, and chuckled quietly at her appearance before approaching and taking off his ever-present straw hat.

"'evening, Miss," he said in greeting with a nod of his head. "I hope this seat's not taken, hmm?"

He sat down without waiting for a reply.

He didn't give her half a second to even question his sitting down or his appearance in its entirity. Faye's mouth had been open to throw out some sarcastic comment, no doubt, but the hangover must've been slowing her down, since she had to close her mouth with a snap before she was accused of trying to catch flies.

Something about him, though, caught her attention. It might've been that stupid hat, but Faye was of the impression that it was the irritation caused by his overly-familiar entrance that put her at this disadvantage. Irritation and a half-dose of amusement, since Faye was sure that, had positions been reversed, she would've done the exact same thing.

"Now it's taken," she replied, smirking although the effect may have been lost due to the large shades covering her eyes. Jet had once said that alone her mouth was enough trouble in and of itself, but when she got that look in her eye to go along with it, it was the stuff of nightmares and bad indigestion. Of course, Jet was a goddamn idiot sometimes, and he was gone, so she chose to discredit it and bring herself back to the present.

"You just walk up to unsuspecting girls like this?" she asked, that sardonic tone still present in her voice. "How rude."

At her accusation of rudeness, the bearded man gave an expression of mock confusion. "Oh? And here I was taking off my hat and everything..."

Kissing hands, opening doors, and taking off your hat were all western customs that he had picked up over the years. They were all terribly romantic and had become part of Shunsui's standard procedure.

The captain leaned forward on the table, chin resting happily in one hand, trying to give his best flirtatious grin. He enjoyed this type of game, after all. Ladies were living, breathing works of art, and pretty words often yielded some beautiful results.

"And may I say, how beautiful your eyes are in the moonlight~?"

Let's see if she remembers that she's wearing those sunglasses...

Faye was of the opinion that taking off your hat didn't warrant any sort of polite repertoire. She could have just as easily taken out her headband. Would that have counted as politeness? Probably not. Someone would've most likely just bitched about her hair being in her face. Men.

Was he honestly being serious?

"But you can't even see my eyes," she replied, leaning forward herself so that she could tilt her glasses down and peer at him over the rise of black plastic. The light was dim but it wasn't that dim. It wasn't like they were sitting in the fucking dark or anything. She really was tired of these wannabe gentlemen and their lame attempts to rope her in.

"Honestly," she went on, digging in her pocket for her cigarettes and Spike's lighter, which she had snatched purposely. "All men fall into two categories, you know what I'm saying? Either you're not trying at all, or you're just missing the mark every time."

Oh~ho! So she remembered.

"Ah-ha that is so...but then, I've seen them before over the computer, and I have a very vivid imagination, hmm?"

It would be a challenge then; he liked this sort best. Women who were too easily swayed with the first few compliments were no fun at all. Perhaps that was why he cared so much for his Nanao-chan. He had yet to break her icy exterior.

The waiter came, and Shunsui ordered his usual cold Sake. It wasn't cool enough yet to switch to the hot. He turned back to her afterwards, and never loosing his grin, responded to her second remark. "And what sort do you think I am, dear lady?"

Faye snorted, reaching out to take the Bloody Mary she'd gotten and not hesitating to take a quick sip through the straw. One, just one. With the way she was feeling, she didn't want to nurse anymore hangovers from Hell if she could prevent it. This was just... getting rid of the bad to make room for the good. That was it.

After swallowing the slush and leaning back in her chair to regard the man across from her, she let his comment and his question sink in before she clicked her tongue and shook her head, unable to stop herself from grinning. She also couldn't stop herself from wondering what his drink tasted like, but she didn't act on that.

Instead she only pushed her glasses up to the crown of her head so she could actually see him. "Well," began Faye, fiddling with her straw, "right now I'd say you're a creep, with a little more emphasis on the stalker side of that." She took another drink and shrugged. "Then again, someone who's obviously got good taste for the finer things around here can't be all bad."

In his younger years he would have been startled by her assessment. But in all likelihood, he'd been playing this kind of game long before she'd been born.

She's got some spark to her...but I do love it when they smile like that anyway...

He gave a humorously thoughtful look, gazing up at the stars. "Stalker? Don't think I've ever gotten that one before..." A little lie wouldn't hurt. Only Nanao ever called him a stalker...and she kind of had right to. "Besides, how can I be a stalker if I don't know where you live or where you work, hmm?"

Shunsui chuckled to himself, mostly out of enjoyment of the situation, and poured himself some sake when it came. "I hope you'll find that I'm not all bad miss, that would make me rather sad if you couldn't enjoy yourself tonight!"

"So then, do you have a job somewhere in the city? Go ahead and tell me where it is, so I can do my as a stalker job better~!" A sip of sake half-hid the grin he was now wearing.

Looking at him was enough of an assessment for Faye. He was taller than her, but then again most people were. She was used to taking down men taller than she was wide, after all, and she figured that his attitude, already, was enough of an indication that he wasn't going to play coy anymore than he already was. Which was just as well: Faye didn't feel like getting into a brawl if he decided to give her a pinch.

Taking another thoughtful sip of her drink, she kept her mouth shut on his comment about her building location, if only because he launched right into his next spiel without giving her a minute to reply, kind of like how he'd just promptly sat down.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, she decided that she was starting to like this guy.

"You could say that," Faye answered, stirring the red mixture and tapping the celery on the side of the glass. She remembered that she'd been about to light a cigarette and tapped one out while she went on: "I don't know if you're familiar with a Christopher Styles, but I work for him. It's grunt work mostly, nothing all that special, but, hey, it puts more money in my pocket than bounty hunting ever did. At least on a regular basis."

Faye paused to snap the lighter twice--she never could get the hang of Zippos--and inhaled gratefully before craning her neck to blow smoke above her head. "What about you? You don't exactly strike me as the nine to five type."

Shunsui shook his head. "Haven't heard of any man named Styles, sorry."

Bounty Hunting, huh?

He thought he remembered her mentioning something about it before, but he hadn't thought about it much. He hadn't met many bounty hunters before.

Perhaps a month and a half ago, hearing that a young lady such as herself was doing something as dangerous as bounty hunting would have startled him. But here, it seemed there were all sorts. It was best to just accept it for now and ask relevant questions later only if he needed to.

As to her question, he wasn't really the nine to five type, but...that's how he found himself working these days.

"Well, I can't really say I like it much, but I work at the hospital as a security guard. It's my second one here...the first one didn't really work out."

Another sip of sake, a little more thoughtful than earlier. "...it's kind of convenient for my other responsibilities though."

Faye shrugged and sharpened the cherry of her cigarette on the lip of an ashtray conveniently placed in the center of the table. "He's not so bad," she said, watching the embers burn down to ash. "A little annoying, but what man in a position of power isn't?"

Though speaking of her boss always gave her cause to be amused, picturing the man across from her working as any sort of security guard made her sputter out a peal of laughter. She didn't bother covering it up, but only asked through her snickering, "No, you don't really look like you'd like it much. Do they make you wear those stupid little hats?" At this she drew her fingers across her brow as if she were adjusting the bill of a hat.

She probably should've bit her tongue, but... oh well. Once Faye Valentine got started, it was unlikely that she'd stop until she got her answers. "What was the first one? And what do you mean 'other responsibilities?' Sounds kinda ominous."

Then again, around here, what didn't?

It only seemed to occur to Shunsui now that he probably should have asked her not to smoke. That kind of thing tended to linger on the clothing, and he didn't really think the laundromat would be open this late. His roommate would not be pleased.

When she laughed, he drew back about an inch in surprise before shaking his head and resuming his earlier expression. "No, the only hat I wear is this one, " he said, patting his straw companion that rest on his lap. "I just wear a name tag."

He gave a slight sigh as she asked about his "other responsibilities" ...In truth there were two reasons he liked staying close to the hospital. But...she only needed to hear about one.

"Saa...well...back home I'm a captain..." he looked up for a minute, wondering how that might sound. "The military kind I think, not the boat kind...and well, some of the people I'm in charge of are here, and they work at the hospital, so it's kind of good, for easy access, you know?"

Shunsui poured himself another cup of sake, and resumed his earlier confident grin. It wouldn't do to get too serious when you're trying to have a good time.

Faye decided that she'd pay good money to see him in the name tag. The image it produced was... really fucking funny, to say the least. Even though he might've said that he was a captain in some army or whatever, she couldn't picture him in the typical army get up: all straight-laced and high collared.

His sigh was off-putting, but Faye didn't dwell on it. In her experience, people tended to open up only when they wanted to, and she'd really heard enough moping to last her several lives.

She took another drag of her cigarette before she stubbed out the little that remained, smothering the embers and saying as she did, "A captain, huh? You don't really strike me as the authoritative type. Don't bullshit me, you just want easy access to all those pain killers for the hangovers."

Though it didn't manifest itself physically, she might as well have winked. "But you know, I think I see the beginnings of a beautiful relationship here. It's always nice to have a guy on the inside."

He gave a slight chuckle at that. He did remember thinking that he'd have good access to said painkillers, but he wasn't thinking about himself at the time.

"Saa, true. I do like how fast I can get pills there," he said, shaking his head amusedly. "But I'm not sure how kindly they'll take to me sneaking some out, hmm?"

It was time to change the subject. Too much of this was hitting home, and he was supposed to be having a good time. He finished off his third cup of sake to speed up the process.

Maybe it was time to ask some of those relevant questions.
"So now you know a bit about me and my home," he said, pouring a fourth cup for himself, and finishing the bottle. "What about where you come from, hmm? That's some nice clothing you got there. I don't recognize it...really shows off your feminine attributes."

A smirk finished that sentence. He looked forward to what kind of lovely response he'd get from that.

"That's why you sneak it out," said Faye, finishing off half of her drink in a good gulp and wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "That kind of eliminates the middle ground where someone catches you in the process. Really, do we women have to do everything around here?"

It was a rhetorical question: she didn't expect him to answer it remotely, but it was amusing to put it out there anyway. Faye never needed an excuse to knock a man down a peg or two.

Of course, the second he started talking about her choice of clothing was when her face pulled, like she'd just swallowed something sour. Was she gonna hear this lecture again? So she wore a few flimsy pieces of vinyl and some suspenders. It got the job done, didn't it?

And Faye said as much, repeating her thought process: "Yeah, well, when you're chasing down bounties it doesn't hurt to have a leg up, literally, on the competition. Especially when that competition is a couple of hard-assed little babies who complain you so much as tell them it's Wednesday. It's not easy for a woman these days, I swear. You have to use every asset available to you, and men are pigs by nature, no offense. As for where I come from, well..."

She drained the rest of her drink and bit down on the celery, speaking around a mouthful of the stuff, "It's nothing special. Way more technical than I care about. Most of the planets are colonized. Earth's pretty much a big crater, and Mars is the hub of the galaxy."

He smiled at the first comment about having a leg up on the competition. She certainly had a nice set.

Look, but don't touch, He reminded himself, knowing the alcohol was definitely kicking in if he was tempted to even imagine such a thing.

"Mars?" Shunsui blurted out before he could stop himself. It was probably the alcohol kicking in. He shook his head. "Yare yare, there really are all sorts of people here..."

Finishing his last cup of sake, he tipped the bottle upside down to get the last few drops. It wasn't much, but he liked to get his money's worth.

He might as well have held the bottle over his open mouth, because he did the same with the cup, somehow thinking this was less rude. He only had a vague notion of looking like a fool only after he had done it, but he ignored the feeling.

"That's the general reaction we usually get, but it's true. Mars, Venus, even Pluto. Pretty much all colonized. A bunch of moons, too," Faye said, watching him pointedly drain the cup in a way altogether more organized than she would have exercised. Tipping the entire bottle upside down wasn't exactly against her code of ethics.

"Besides," she went on, lighting another cigarette, only taking one snap of the lighter to get it to light properly this time, "it could be worse. I could be from some weird other dimension with dragons and demons and shit. That's the stuff that gets me. It's like... something out of storybook. The place I come from is... pretty normal. Just a little further into the future, I guess."

She shrugged and tapped her ashes off. If she wasn't careful, she'd put herself into a shitty mood, and she didn't want that. Not when this guy was as amusing and entertaining as he was.

Shunsui gave a slight laugh. That's normal? Funny idea...

But then again, he couldn't really say what was normal and what was not anymore. What was normal for one person, was not for another it seemed. He'd heard of wizards and vampires and things like that since coming here, after all.

"I probably come from one of those crazy places you don't like I think."

Perhaps it was the sake speaking, but he couldn't help but play another sort of game. It was always fun to see the reaction.

He leaned forward on the table so she could get a good look at his face - albeit a slightly red face - and grinned. "Guess how old I am~!"

Was he drunk? From behind the haze of hangover and probably alcohol poisoning--she really needed to learn her limits--Faye was having a hard time telling. Though the patio was decorated with lights, she still couldn't tell, though she could see the rouge across his face.

"Oh, really?" she asked in accordance with his comment about coming from a world she might not like. "I doubt it. I've been here for a goddamn year. It's not like I'm not used to that kind of stuff by now."

Had their positions been reversed, had she been the one asking, it would've been a rather dangerous sort of game to play. You couldn't just do that with a woman, but, hey, this guy obviously wasn't a girl that Faye could see. Not that she had any good experience in the matter--after all there was Gren to consider.

But that wasn't the point here. Faye didn't care if she got it right or not, she just wanted to know. "Hmm... thirty?"

Shunsui chuckled and leaned back in his seat. He always loved seeing the reaction...time to drop the bomb, as they say.

"Really now~ you flatter me. I usually get thirty-five or forty even...I actually don't know for sure myself,"

He looked up in thought. "Something in the range of two thousand, with maybe a couple of centuries on top of that. I stopped counting a while ago."

It was amazing he still remembered his birthday actually.

He put a hand on his chin, giving a cross between a confident and an amused look. "I think I look pretty good for my age, don't you?"

It wasn't as if Faye didn't have any experience dealing with people who were a lot older than they looked. Everyday she looked in the mirror, she got a good enough reminder of that, but this was, well.... this was a little different.

"Two--two... two thousand?" she stammered, accidentally smashing her cigarette into the ashtray and sending oranges ashes flying across the table. When she pulled her hand out of the mess, her fingers were black with the stuff.

Once she wrapped her head around the concept--they did have vampires around here, after all, and Lord knew how old Cori actually was--it was easier to fall back into pace, get her mind back on track. Letting her mouth curve with a smile, she pulled her glasses back down and said, "Well then, sugar daddy, being so much older than me, I can count on you to pick up the check, riiiight?"

That was a fun reaction, he had to admit. Though she bounced back rather quickly. It was just as well, the drinks were finished and it was getting late.

He grinned at her anyway and nodded when she repeated the number.

Sugar daddy? That's a new one...I wonder what it means...

"Certainly dear~" he said instead of questioning the new terminology. "I said I'd take you out, didn't I? That's part of the deal, after all."

Seeing her making gestures that signaled her departure, he stood, and made his way over to her chair, pulling it out for her.

Kyouraku Shunsui was a gentleman, if nothing else.

"I had a lovely time, Miss Valentine~!"

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Log ; Complete

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject