Koto spent quite a bit of time unwinding in the cocktail lounge after the tournament fights — there was nothing like a little booze and conversation to top off a good day, or at least prevent it from going downhill. She couldn't stand to hole herself up. It gave too much opportunity for thought and regret and that was just something she didn't like dealing with for too many hours in the day. Socializing was something that came more naturally to her, and, well, alcohol just happened to be great at helping out.
She usually only talked to the guys, but she occasionally held up short chats with the waitresses. Many of them were dressed to impress, sleek and sexual and over-confident. You practically had to be to make it anywhere around here, surrounded by the super-rich and bloodthirsty. But Koto had noticed a new waitress flitting around earlier, one who didn't look quite as confident as some of the others. It was understandable for being new. The other girls were probably giving her a hard time, too — girls in competition for favoritism around a bunch of rich men could be catty. She looked sweet, though, and Koto felt a little sympathetic, so the next time the young apparition ducked behind the bar to request a bottle of the next fancy liquor she'd be serving, Koto looked at her and said, "It's cold in here, how do you get by wearing that thing?"
The girl looked at her, slightly startled at being addressed by someone other than a man or another server. "O-oh, this? I guess I'm just used to cold places. It's a bit colder where I come from."
Koto smiled. "Maybe I'm just getting used to this island climate. It wasn't too warm where I came from, either."
She thought maybe a bit of conversation would help the girl relax, and to Koto's pleasure, she did smile back. "Really? Maybe I'll start shivering more the longer I stay here, huh?"
"Let's hope not, because I don't think they'll change the uniform policy anytime soon." The two of them shared a laugh just as the bartender came to hand the waitress her bottle. "Hey, I'm Koto, by the way."
"Oh, I know," the girl responded with a wink as she began to walk off. "I'm Juri!"
As she watched her hurry off to a set of couches on the other side of the lounge, Koto decided Juri seemed like a nice girl.