Finally Legal
Cast:
Cure Blossom, Hanasaki Tsubomi - age 20
Cure Marine, Kurumi Erika - age 20
Cure Sunshine, Myoudouin Itsuki - age 20
Cure Moonlight, Tsukikage Yuri - age 23
Dark PreCure, Tsukikage Sumire - age 22
Kurumi Momoka - Erika's sister - age 23
Baritone, Toujou Naoto - Bartender - age 26
February, 2016
The bartender is dressed in a three-piece suit that seems specifically selected to evoke the image of a bartender: white shirt, black vest, black tie, black pants. He has long, pale blue hair, which he wears in a loose ponytail.
Erika is wearing a white coat over a black dress with black thigh-high boots and blue stockings, but the coat is swiftly removed now that she is indoors. Spotting the man behind the bar, she stomps right up to him and slams her ID card on the counter.
"Challenge!"
The man does not flinch at her shout, but calmly takes the card in hand, then pulls a jeweler's loupe and a blacklight from beneath the counter. For several moments, he carefully examines both sides of the card and even the edges, before smiling and handing it back to her.
"It seems the third time is the charm, Miss Kurumi Erika. I believe you are now of legal drinking age."
"That's right, I am!"
Behind her, the other PreCures of her year and her big sister sit down at the bar and show their ID cards without making a big deal of it.
"And what will you be having?"
"I'll have one of everything!" Erika replies, so obviously excited that she almost sparkles.
"One of everything?" The bartender repeats. It is clearly an unthinkable request.
Sumire claps her hand on Erika's shoulder. "If you actually do that, your blood alcohol is going to shoot all the way up to flammable. Let's start with the birthday special."
The bartender grins. "One birthday special, then."
He produces two bottles and a few other things. As he mixes them, the bartender sings.
"Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... You get one free martini... Happy birthday to you."
The finished cocktail, complete with olive, is set in front of Erika as the song ends. Erika tries to hide her excitement, but her attention is wholly focused on the drink. As she takes her first sip, the other girls place their own orders.
Erika's glass is already empty by the time Itsuki receives her drink.
"Ice water? Itsuki, this is a drinking party!"
"I can't," Itsuki says, putting a hand on her stomach. Her pregnancy is visible, but not yet obvious.
"One drink isn't going to kill the baby," Erika says. She clearly thinks she is whispering, but she is just as clearly already buzzed. "Barkeep, surprise me! And while you're at it, surprise her!"
The bartender nods silently. A short while later, two identical drinks, brightly colored with little umbrellas and a slice of lemon, are set before Erika and Itsuki. Erika immediately goes to work on hers, while the bartender leans across the bar and whispers to Itsuki: "The surprise is that there's no alcohol."
As Erika polishes off her second drink, Sumire ambushes her with a question. "So, birthday girl... can we expect any announcements about that boyfriend of yours?"
"That guy? That guy?! Forget that guy! I'm too good for him!" It seems the topic was a land mine. "How about the rest of you? Aren't there any good guys in our lives?"
As Erika scans down the bar, each woman gives a quick excuse in turn.
Itsuki: "Husband."
Sumire: "Fiance."
Yuri: "Law school."
Momoka: "Available."
As Erika spins around and focuses her attention on Tsubomi, Momoka flags down the bartender and hands him a slip of paper with her phone number on it. It vanishes into one of the man's many pockets.
"Tsubomi... I know you're holding out on me!"
"Really, I'm not. I'm busy with college, and-"
"And your boyfriend is at the same school!"
"Kenji is not my boyfriend! We're just good friends."
"Right... he's such a good friend that he followed you to your schmancy science college to study art."
"I- It's not like that! Somebody, back me up here!"
Looking beyond Erika to the other members of the group, Tsubomi sees that she has made her appeal to a pack of wolves.