The bar was rowdy and crowded before they even arrived. By a judicious show of force - namely, Kiri speaking sternly while caressing one of her guns - they managed to secure a table and six chairs, although they were still a bit cramped. Apparently it was some sort of local holiday, because half of the tables in the room were gone to make room for a small three-piece band, consisting of a guitar player, a drummer, and a man with an assortment of woodwinds and pipes on a rack in front of him. There were people dancing in the area in front of the band, although it was more a drunken swaying than any sort of recognizable dance.
Kiri waved down the barmaid and they all ordered drinks and food. She had managed to sit directly next to Kida - despite her normal prejudices - in order to keep an eye on her and carry out her plan. To her dismay, Kida only ordered water to start out with. That would never do… Kiri needed the angel at least mostly drunk, if not plain unconscious, for the better part of her plan to work. Then again, her “plan” at this point consisted of knocking Kida out and dragging her upstairs, but it was a start.
“So, not going to join us in our celebratory drinking?” she asked Kida in a teasing voice.
“No. Unlike some here, I don’t need to get drunk to have a good time,” Kida retorted.
“Hey now, no need to get defensive. Just tryin’ to make amends here, extendin’ the hand of friendship, if you will.”
Kida gave her a long, searching look that Kiri entirely avoided by taking a long swig of her beer, which the barmaid had just dropped off.
“I suppose. Well, I’m not very familiar with alcoholic drinks as a rule. What do you recommend?” Kida’s voice was now painfully polite, as if she was straining to be civil. Actually, she probably was, a fact that Kiri found hilarious. She had no problem socializing with the snobby swordswoman. Of course, that was mostly due to the fact that she would be killing her shortly.
“Hmm… well, without knowin’ this particular bar, I’ll just have to take a guess… y’like fruity drinks, liquor, beer, wine… any idea?”
“Um… I’ve had wine before, it’s all right. I don’t like beer. Haven’t really had any liquor.”
Kiri rolled her eyes. Gods above the girl was sheltered. “Well, we’ll start you off easy.” She waved down the barmaid again and waited until the woman had weaved her way through the tables towards them. “Bring my friend here a strawberry daiquiri, will ya?”
The barmaid just nodded and dove back into the crowd. Kida was frowning slightly, a confused look on her face. “Daiqiri? What’s that?”
“It’s like a fruit slushie, but with rum. Nice and sweet and fruity, with a kick.”
Kida still looked a bit apprehensive. When the drink arrived in a tall, frosty glass, garnished with a strawberry and a sprig of mint, she looked at it with wide eyes. “It’s very… pink.”
“Well, that would be the strawberry. Go on, give it a try!” Kiri said impatiently.
Kida obediently picked up the glass and took a small sip through the straw. Her face when through a gamut of emotions - first nervous, then surprised, then confused, then, finally, pleased. “It’s… wow, it’s actually not bad.” She favored Kiri with her first genuine smile of the night. It made Kiri uncomfortable, because when Kida smiled it was almost possible to like her. Liking one’s prey was generally considered a bad thing.
“Glad to hear it. Drink up!” she said quickly, then turned away towards Ares, who was seated on her other side.
They made small talk until the food arrived. Before they dug in, Kiri stood up and lifted her glass.
“A toast! To the successful reunion of friends, and to the end of one adventure… and the beginning of another!”
There was a round of “Cheers!” as everyone clinked glasses and drank, then set to on their food. Kiri had opted for the steak, and as she cut into it the delicious aroma made her stomach growl in anticipation. It was cooked perfectly, still pink on the inside the way she liked it, and only the barest of seasonings. Really, all a steak needed was a little salt, maybe some garlic, and fresh ground black pepper. When the first bite hit her tongue, she couldn’t help a little sigh of appreciation. It had been entirely too long since she’d had a well-prepared steak, and this one was phenomenal. If there was one thing that could be said for your average tavern in Geonova, it was that they - almost as a rule - had excellent food. At least the nicer ones like this did.
With her usual lack of table manners, Kiri speared a piece of potato off Kida’s plate and ate it, just grinning when she was met with an annoyed glare. “Those potatoes aren’t bad. Needs more butter, though.”
Kida sniffed. “I think they’re fine. Food doesn’t have to be smothered in grease to taste good.”
“No, but it sure helps!” Kiri laughed.
“It’s true,” Ares chimed in, gesturing to the pile of fried shrimp on his plate.
Looking around the table, Kiri noticed that Kida and Destiny were the only ones who had gone for something even remotely “healthy.” Kida had grilled chicken along with her roasted potatoes. Destiny was halfway through a bowl of vegetable soup. Tomlyn had gone for a burger, which he was tackling with a dogged industry, despite the fact it was almost too big for his mouth. Renee, on the other hand, had simply ordered a giant piece of cheesecake. She was happily devouring it, and was already on her third glass of ale.
Their dinners occupied them for the next fifteen minutes, and there was much sampling all around of each other’s dishes. By the time the plates were scraped clean, Kiri was full to the brim, and judged from the expressions on the other’s faces that they were as well. To her dismay, she noticed that Kida was barely halfway through her strawberry daiquiri, having chosen to drink mostly water with her meal. Perhaps it was time to devise another plan.
She glanced around the room and noticed the line of people standing near the door, apparently waiting for tables. “Well, perhaps we should get up and let someone else use this table. I say we go dance!”
“I love dancing!” Renee chirped happily, bouncing to her feet. Kiri laughed and stood as well, pulling Ares to his feet and grinning at Destiny and Kida.
“You ladies going to join us?”
Destiny sighed and stood up, stretching with a groan. “I suppose I might as well. Work off some of this excellent food.”
Kida also rose, holding her drink, but did not seem so excited. “I think I’ll pass. Destiny, when you’re ready to leave, come find me. I’ll probably sit at the bar for now.” Destiny nodded, and she left the table.
Destiny edged up next to Kiri and spoke quietly in her ear, careful to not let Ares overhear. “Please tell me you have a plan.”
“It’s a work in progress. She’s too strong for me to take her head on.”
“I know that! That’s why I hired you, I figured you were good at being… devious.”
Kiri shot her a look. “Darling, I fight with guns. There’s not much devious about a bullet, it flies straight and doesn’t like to stop.” There was a moment of uneasy silence. “Still, I’ll get the job done. Just you be patient and wait, y’hear?”
“Fine. Just be quick about it!” Destiny hissed.
Kiri rolled her eyes and grabbed the cat by the arm, dragging her towards the dance floor. The other three were already dancing, so they joined them. The band had struck up a lively group dance song, so before long Kiri found herself dragged into a large circle of dancers. The steps were fairly simple to learn just by watching the other dancers, and Kiri was fortunate enough to be a moderately acceptable dancer. They circled one way, then the other, then broke into two groups. Kiri found herself partnered with a handsome, but slightly too young boy for the second part of the dance. He was an excellent dancer, however, and led her easily through the complicated twists and steps. She caught a glimpse of Ares dancing with a beautiful blonde and giggled - he was certainly happy. Her partner gave her an odd look when she laughed, but she brushed it off with a shake of her head.
The dance ended all too soon, and the temporary camaraderie that had formed in the group evaporated quickly. The band began to play a slower song, and couples paired off to sway rhythmically to the music.
Kiri took the opportunity to duck out of the press of dancers. She spotted Kida at the bar, her back fortunately turned, and paused. Mentally, she inventoried everything she had in her pack, searching for anything that might be useful. Shotgun would be no good, neither would pistols - too loud, would draw too much attention. If she had a silencer, maybe, but she hadn’t found the opportunity to acquire one of those yet.
No use trying a grenade in such confined spaces, she’d only get herself killed too. She had some potions, but only of the healing variety - no handy poisons. Map, compass, pencils, flashlight, all useless.
Then an idea struck her. If she wasn’t mistaken, she still had the small tranquilizer gun and darts that she had picked up on her last job as protection from wild animals in the Forest of Azale down south. She dropped her pack on a nearby chair and dug through it. Sure enough, tucked in between her spare clothes and her ammunition case was the small bag that held the tranq gun and five thin, almost clear darts. Now that had potential. Firing the gun itself would only draw an undue amount of attention. Besides, it took time for the drug to release from the needle, and if Kida noticed and was quick about it, she could pull the dart out before it had time to take effect. No, she needed to be more subtle than that. Which meant she had to be clever.
Kiri hated being clever. Fortunately, she was good at it even so, and so the solution presented itself easily. She chose one of the five darts and palmed it, a trick she had learned from her father. He had been a street magician for a while in his youth, and had taught her all the easy tricks of sleight-of-hand. With dart in hand, she slipped up behind Kida. Once she was within ten feet, she stopped all pretense of being secretive, and strode up to Kida and slapped her on the back, turning the dart so it pierced her clothing and skin and lodged in her back.
“Hey there, sword-girl! Y’looked lonely, thought I might come keep ya company,” Kiri said loudly. Kida just glared at her, and Kiri had to fight to keep from hopping with glee. She hadn’t noticed the dart! It was only a matter of time, now.
“Why? You looked like you were having a good time out there dancing,” Kida said flatly, clearly not interested in conversation.
“Oh, y’know me, always lookin’ out for everyone’s welfare. Don’t want anyone bein’ bored at our little celebration here.” As she talked, Kiri noticed Kida blinking groggily, her brow creasing in a frown.
“What… what did you… what did you do?” Kida muttered, swinging her arm towards Kiri and missing by at least a foot. She overbalanced and nearly fell, only Kiri’s quick movement preventing it.
“Easy there, easy. Calm down…” Noticing a few curious stares, Kiri grinned and ruffled Kida’s hair, supporting the now unconscious girl with an arm around her waist. “My friend here just had a bit too much t’drink. Y’know how it is…” There were knowing grins and laughs all around.
Destiny chose that moment to make her appearance. “I was watching from the dance floor,” she murmured quietly, under her breath. “Very smooth.” Kiri couldn’t tell if she was being sarcastic or serious, but chose to take it as the latter.
“Thanks. Help me carry her, will you?” The last was said out loud for the benefit of those still watching them. Destiny willingly took Kida’s feet, grasping them by the ankles and lifting. Kiri had one hand under each arm, and together they managed to maneuver the unconscious angel across the room and up the stairs. There were a few moments of near-catastrophe, when Destiny nearly tripped over one of Kida’s trailing wingtips, and when Kiri almost missed a step going backwards, but finally they made it to the second floor of the tavern, where the rooms and suites were.
“My room is on the left, third down. We can drop her there,” Kiri said. Destiny nodded in agreement and they continued down the hall. Once they reached the door there was another moment of awkwardness. Finally, Kiri just motioned for Destiny to help her sit Kida down and lean her against the wall. That done, Kiri could fish in her pocket for the key, then unlock and open the door, allowing them to drag Kida the rest of the way inside and lift her up onto the bed.
Kiri stood up straight and pulled out her pistol, cocking it and looking at Destiny with one eyebrow raised.
“Are you sure you want me to do this?”
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