This is the first entree of the party; a lot happens here, but I'm not cranking it up to the max until the third and final chapter. There's just a lot of general festivities going on here, fun stuff, drinks, pranking Rose, etc. not to say that there isn't some M-stuff here, there definitely is.
Since I obviously can't post song lyrics, I just sprinkled in some song titles of beloved songs from my childhood. Since Kumite takes place after XIII and before XIV, that's between 2010 and 2016, to give you an idea of what might be here. I don't think I went any further than 2012, tbh, and I did a couple that I used to listen to as a kid back in the mid 2000s.
Anyways, enjoy.
2:49 PM
T.I. - WHATEVER YOU LIKE
The party was in full swing. Drinks were flowing, music blaring, and most everyone had shed their bubble of social propriety to share the high of the bustling atmosphere. Bodies in close proximity, energetic sounds buzzing through their ears and into their skin, the warmth of alcohol melting their inhibitions...
Nobody cared who liked or hated who, or who was wearing what, how well or terrible they danced. The thrill of the moment was intoxicating, and they all passed it around like a contagion, as their bodies moved in uncoordinated, yet harmonious motion, sharing the heat of those around them. Drinks sloshed erratically, lovers grinded sensually... it was pure, unbridled chaos, but the conformity-destroying type that was sinfully fun to indulge in. Everyone got drunk in the moment, and allowed themselves to forego rationality, and just enjoy the pleasing sensations... and sights.
Most of them were on the dance floor, with a few glaring exceptions being Gato and Kensou at the bar, and Iori off somewhere on his own, sitting. Iroha didn't understand the music enough to dance, and Silber wasn't the type either.
Mary's eyes wandered over to the far end: underneath a large parasol lay a pair of beach chairs, the shadow obscuring two pale bodies who were confined to the limitations of its artificial protection. She felt bad; they'd come all this way, yet were content to lay there under the shade, reluctant if unable to join in the sun-filled festivities.
Wanting to find a way to include them, she got a mischievous idea. She leaned in close to Terry's ear and whispered, "Hey...wanna watch me piss Rose off?"
Terry needed no second question. "YES."
With a cute wink and a peck on the chin, Mary slipped over to the beer table and fished for a Heineken, betting this would be a local favorite. Hips swaying, she strutted over to their position...
"Hey handsome."
Adelheid removed the sunglasses out of respect to address a speaker; he and Rose looked up and saw Mary with a sultry smile, chewing on a lock of her hair.
"Miss Ryan. Nice to see you again." Adelheid greeted, only... partially picking up on the cues. Rose, however, was MUCH quicker to the punch.
Cutting eyes at the brat, enjoying this far too much, Mary smirked and leaned over... purposely much lower than necessary. She noticed Adelheid's eyes dart low, capturing the sight of her exacerbated cleavage hanging out of her top, and the furious scowling of Rose that followed. She loved it.
She extended the beer. "I bet you're thirsty. You like these?"
Rose caught the double entendre, even if he didn't, and nearly opened her mouth to attack...but Adelheid simply accepted the offering with a smile, his sunglasses returning to his face. "Yes, these are one of my favorites. Thank you."
"Anytime, sweetie~"
Mary turned back around and strutted away, just imaging the look of absolute HATRED on Rose's face right now. She wished she had planned ahead and had a camera ready.
Terry and some of the other hostess-haters were laughing aloud. As she returned, Mai slapped her hand in a high-five. "THAT. WAS. LEGENDARY."
Mary snickered with self-satisfaction. "What'd she look like when I was walking away?"
"Oh she wanted to stab you." Yuri was laughing with each word.
Mai put conjoining arms around them. "Guys, Mary has given me an idea. Rose being here might actually be a golden opportunity...if you catch my drift."
A bunch of eyebrows raised... followed by mischievous grins. They all seemed to get it.
"I think it's time we give our dear hostess a little payback." Mary spoke with much glee.
"All night. We don't let up." Terry rubbed his hands evilly.
The expression on King's face could only be described as an angel who had just found an automatic weapon. She LOVED it.
With this mutual understanding, this united force against a once-disastrous hostess... their drinks all combined in unison. CLINK!
Rose, meanwhile, was feeling her control slip away, and she did NOT like it. The idea of losing her beloved brother to these heathens frightened her dearly, and thus, she played any desperate card she could to make him pay attention to her.
"B-brother!" she blurted. "I forgot to put on sunblock. I've left myself at risk! Won't you help me?"
Adelheid cut his head towards her, stared blankly...then turned back. "Why don't you get one of the others to do it for you?"
Rose's eyebrows lifted above her sunglasses. "Th-those barbarians, touching my fair skin? Are you mad?!"
"Rose...it's not a big deal."
"But I want you to-!"
"ROSE."
He turned back towards her, lowering his sunglasses, to better drive home his words. "I'm asking you, as your brother, please...give it a rest. It's a party. Loosen up, and try to get along with some people. OTHER people."
No other words, as he realigned his glasses and returned to his resting position. Rose was left stammering, wholly unsatisfied from the exchange.
"B-but...but I..."
As if on cue, Joe Higashi, the ravenous blonde-hunter, again popped up, looking to fill the void left by Lilly. "Heya Rose! I heard about your predicament...we better get you rubbed down! Can't have the sun cooking your delicate complexion!"
Rose looked at Adelheid one more time. She could have SWORN he was grinning...with a frustrated grunt, she threw the lotion into Joe's arms and plopped down in defeat.
USHER - LOVE IN THIS CLUB
3:01 PM
After the third song ended, everyone was good and fired up... to cool their bodies, they started hitting the pool.
SPLASH! SPLASH! SPLASH!
A few had already gotten wet prior, but the pool had officially become standing room only; nearly every body now occupied it, though it was large enough to accommodate. It started off as a fairly standard affair...
...Then came the trick jumps.
"MUSASABI NO MAI!" the kunoichi took to the skies and soared down like a homing missile. thankfully aiming for the deep end, as she collided with an impressive splash.
Benimaru was up next, going high and coming down with his spiraling divekick. Shingo came in afterwards with a standard belly flop, but hit hard on the surface and appeared to hurt...something.
"OSU!" Ryo boomed with a flying Karate kick into the water, followed by Robert coming in with a more missile-trajectory one.
"PHOENIX ARROW!" Athena plunged in with her Psycho Power.
"CRACK SHOOT!"
"KUHADAN!" The Bogard brothers plunged in next, followed by Joe with his classic Ougon no Kakato heel kick.
"SPIN FALL!" Mary came in right after with her patented heel kick.
Seth shook his head. "I'm too old to be diving in like that."
His vigorous cohort, however, objected. "I'm not! YAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Ramon leaped in with his limbs spread wide, colliding hard on the surface... but unlike Shingo, he was more used to doing splashes, therefore his tougher exterior held up.
Tizoc assisted Angel in the next one, the luchadora using his body as a springboard for her to leap off of with a powerful diving elbow.
"RAAAWWR! STAND BACK AND BEWARE MY MIGHTY MOONSAULT!" the dinosaur exclaimed afterward... and turned his back and prepared to leap.
"Ohhhh shit, EVERYBODY TAKE COVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Shen Woo warned for dear life, already scrambling out of the way. Everyone else scattered like cockroaches, as the massive beast went airborne with a backwards somersault...
SPLASHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
From a distance, Silber scoffed. "Pfeh. That's nothing. If I did my heel drop, there'd be no water left!"
Most were in the water and having fun, but Ryo looked around and noticed one major player missing: a tall, French kickboxer who would stand out among the sea of beautiful women in Ryo's eyes.
He looked around, wondering if she had emerged from the house yet; that's when he noticed a slight commotion at the bar, still occupied by a few. But besides Shingo, Silber and Gato, Hein appeared to be arguing (if one could call the man's passive demeanor argumentative)
...With a tall blonde kickboxer, who looked incredible from the rear. Long, bare legs that seemed to travel up endlessly, connected to a burgundy low-back one piece, that wasn't severely scant, but still moderately cheeky on the backside, probably due to the impressiveness of her glutes forcing the swimsuit to have to work harder.
Ryo propped his head on the side of the pool and stared, with a goofy, swooning smile... he could watch her complain about Hein muddling mint instead of shaking it all day...
"HEY KINGY! LET IT GO AND COME GET IN THE WATER!" Yuri's voice next to his ear startled him, causing him to fall backwards into the water.
"But he's not doing it right!" she called out, turning around... and the front was even more impressive. The bottom portion was high cut, leaving no amount of thigh covered, and the abdomen was concealed for the most part, save for a tiny slit allowing her navel to stand out... the slit traveled upwards and opened up near the top, resulting in the top halves of her breasts curving outward with perfect symmetry, with a tiny canyon of cleavage down the middle. Nobody else could rock a one piece so exquisitely... and given she still had residual thoughts about her fractured ribs last year, King was just fine with that merit.
"Alright, alright, nevermind... you get off easy today, Jeeves! SURPRISE ROSE!"
King took to the skies with her patented divekick, coming down in the water with a SPLASH! and Ryo couldn't have been more delighted to see her, closing distance and scooping her up in his buff arms. King laughed and collapsed into him, pressing their chests together, and their lips soon after.
"HEY ADELHEID!" Mai cupped her hands and called out. "COME JOIN US!"
Adelheid heard, but he merely gestured with his hand in refusal, nodding politely. She pouted...but then her eyes cut to his left, and a grin spread on her lips.
"Hey guys, I need a volunteer. Somebody with nothing to lose."
Shingo started to raise his hand, but Benimaru shoved it down. "You've got your whole life ahead of you. What are you thinking, Mai?"
Mai grinned wider. "I'm thinking... we get Rose wet."
Benimaru's mouth dropped. "Oh hell no. After what she did to Iori...I wouldn't dare."
"Fuck it, I'll do it." King volunteered. "She already hates me anyway."
Ryo started to open his mouth in protest, but to no avail; she had already emerged from the water, amidst a flurry of cackles from Mai, Mary, and the union of Rose-crusaders.
"Oh my god, Kingy...!" Yuri cried out.
"She's not seriously gonna-" Andy started.
But by god, she did. King started in a casual walk, passing by...then out of nowhere took a mad dash at Rose, screaming, "FIRE! FIRE! OHMYGODROSE YOU'RE ON FIRE!"
Rose jumped in her seat, the sunglasses flying off her face. "Wha, what are you- WAAAAHHHH!"
Everyone simultaneously expelled noises as King had scooped up Rose, fireman-style, and was running towards the pool. "I'LL PUT YOU OUT!"
The hostess from hell only had a few seconds to kick and scream in defiance. "P-PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT! BROTHER, HELP ME! AAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
SPLASH!
The unthinkable had been made real; within a second, an extremely pissed off Rose emerged to the surface, flailing angrily, her blonde hair darkened and unrestrained around her. Black streaks of mascara trailed down her eyes. A choir of laughter sang around her.
"YOU!" she hissed menacingly to a nearly-crying King. "YOU, YOUUU...MY HAIR! MY MASCARA! YOU'VE RUINED ME!"
"Its a party, not a royal ball!" King spoke between wails. "Pull the bejeweled scepter out of your butt already!"
The humiliated hostess turned her back to their hyenic mocking, clawing for an edge to crawl out of. She tried to climb up, but was struggling, and Joe took the opportunity to give her backside a helpful push. "Here, lemme hel-"
"Don't touch me!" Rose smacked him away. "YOU'RE ALL JUST A BUNCH OF... UNCIVILIZED... ASSHOLES!"
"Don't worry, we won't charge you!" Mary jeered. "That exorcism was on the house!" King raised a hand, and Mary slapped it in triumph.
Rose muttered curses the entire time back to her seat. "Bunch of...animals...no respect for... nobility...uncouth...savages..."
"Here." Adelheid, who had wholly remained uninvolved, extended one courteous act in handing her a towel.
She angrily snatched it, and began working on her face. "You're just going to let them treat me that way?"
Adelheid rolled his eyes. "Oh honestly, Rose... they're just having fun."
"FUN?!" she growled. "You call nearly drowning me fun?!"
"You should be thankful they're only making fun at your expense. After the way you treated them, that's a light sentence."
"So you're on their side." she frowned, applying the towel to her arms, then her chest, working her way down.
"I'm on NOBODY'S side... but I speak the truth." Adelheid frankly replied. "These are good people, Rose. If this is their way of reconciling with the mistakes made in Munich... take it in stride. And count yourself lucky."
Rose snorted with disgust, applying the towel to her hair and commencing a furious scrub. "Hmph. You should be defending me against these animals! It's nice to know whose side you're really on... I... I hate you!"
"You know... you look pretty like this." he casually stated, turning back around to rest. "Without all that makeup and your hair natural."
"Oh... th-thank you~" she blushed, and her fury towards all was suddenly evaporated.
As always, there was one perpetual holdout.
Iori, as he could always be counted on to do, secluded himself in the furthest corner of the backyard, arms folded and a repelling scowl on his face. He tried as hard as he could to make himself undesirable...but given his massive upper body and general handsomeness, it was a tough feat. Suffice to say, the girls wanted him in the water. The question was how...or perhaps "who".
"Chiz, your boy is acting like a hardass in the most heavenly place on earth." Mai grunted. "Can't you get him to behave?"
Chizuru folded her arms against the edge, looked out and saw Iori sitting there...head in his hand and looking miserable, in a place surrounded by food, drink and women. It didn't seem scientifically possible...but Iori was often known to defy logic.
"I'm not his mom, or his wife, you know."
"But he'll only listen to a few people...mainly you."
Chizuru groaned. "Aw Mai, I just got in the water...if I get out now, I'll be cold and drafty."
"Well, just send a clone!"
Chizuru's eyes widened. "I-is it morally right to use the Yata mirror in such ways..."
"Oh fuck that, it's YOUR sacred jewel right? Do what you want with it." Mai maintained.
"Hmm well... you do have a point..."
With that in mind, the Yata priestess used her powers for personal convenience, manifesting a Chizuru for the sole purpose of being diplomatic with her grumpy partner.
Iori was right where they left him; it wasn't until he saw the looming shadow that he cut his eyes over and acknowledged her arrival.
"Why are you acting like this?" she wasted no time going on the offense, a favorable strategy given who she was dealing with.
Iori snorted air. "Look...I did what you wanted in Munich. I didn't want to, but I did. Now you're trying to demand more of me. You're taking a mile at this point."
"Why is it so hard for you to just interact with people?!" her voice raised.
"Because they don't want me here!" he snapped back. "I see the way they all look at me...like I'm a freak. A monster. They all wait in fear, for the next time I take things too far... probably scared I'll ruin this party for everyone."
"Will you just get out of your own head? Nobody here thinks that way!"
"You don't speak for everyone!"
"NEITHER DO YOU!"
Their yelling match took a hiatus. Deep breaths led to cooler heads, and, after a moment of silence... her voice returned to her more suitable demeanor.
"Iori...when are you going to realize that there are plenty others who accept you besides those two...?"
Iori scoffed, swinging at air. It was enough to at least get him moving, as he stood up, if for no other reason than to escape the confrontation. "They're the only two that don't have to be afraid of me."
Chizuru's face saddened. She watched him turn and walk away, feeling like she had lost... once again. With all her efforts, all her breath, it seemed like she could never change him.
Iori got a few steps away, and stopped. He sighed; maybe it DID click in his head that he was being too aloof... moreso than Gato even. What a horrible comparison that was.
He turned back around and looked at her. He allowed his eyes to wander... first to her eyes, then lower, to capture the sight of her exquisite swimsuit: a white one piece that split off at the abdomen, leaving a tiny slit traveling upwards, just enough to show her navel. It covered her chest for the most part... but enticingly left a mild exposure of underboob, before curving around the back and conjoining the upper and bottom with a gold ring in the center of her spine. He looked deeper; he could have sworn he saw tiny diamonds embedded in the fabric, at various points. It looked incredibly expensive, and incredibly... her.
She began to blush, realizing he was standing there checking her out. She didn't say anything... but her hand unconsciously rose upwards and began looping her hair.
"You look nice in that." he finally said, before turning and walking towards the bar. Thus, Chizuru ended up getting the best of both worlds: she got Iori to loosen up, and she got to feel her face warming up like Kyo's flames were lighting her. Both were nice feelings.
PANIC! AT THE DISCO - READY TO GO (GET ME OUT OF MY MIND)
After the initial mass dive, everyone dispersed afterwards to proceed of their own desires. Several stayed in and kept swimming, while others got out to go eat, drink, or dance. Save for Kensou, Gato and Silber, who never left the bar, everyone was in full motion at this point.
"...Oh my god, dude look at that. Dude. Dude!"
Shen Woo had started poking Joe's arm, but when the Thai fighter failed to respond, the brawler instead drew back and punched him instead.
"OWWW!" that caught Joe's attention, who finally quit in the middle of his bad joke and turned to face him. "What the fuck are you-"
Shen just grabbed his head and directed it towards the edge of the pool, where Iroha was currently climbing out... her soaked fabric was stuck to her and had become transparent, as evidenced by the fact that her rose-red nipples were now completely visible through the clinging cloth, areola and all. Joe's mouth dropped.
"She has to be aware of that... right? I mean, she can't not be."
Joe physically closed his own mouth, then responded. "I don't know, man... but holy shit."
"Do you think we should, uh...?"
"Tell her? Nawww... I mean... like you said, man, she must be aware."
They stayed glued to her as she graciously accepted a hot dog from Ryo on the grill... then proceeded to plunge it halfway into her mouth and chew with much enjoyment.
"...She's either clueless, or a fucking mastermind."
Two more beauties had also emerged from the pool, and were walking arm-in-arm; Vanessa and Mary, their red and blonde manes respectively soaked and hanging, strutted their dripping wet bikini bods confidently across the patio on their way to the grill. Vanessa's two-piece was almost identical to Mary's, except white, and the bottoms were fastened by side-ties instead of being slip-on briefs. Besides that, the most noticeable difference was that her chest, while still generously cleavage-baring, was not quite as big as her blonde partner's... but in the rear, her superiority shown with a lot more bounce in her trunk.
They caught Ramon looking, who flashed a grin and jokingly lifted up his eyepatch to accentuate his approval. Looking at each other with a smirk... they saw ample opportunity to take the piss of their comic relief partner.
"See something you like, Ramon~?" Vanessa asked rhetorically, as she and Mary came to a rest in front of him, their arms still around each others' waists.
Ramon's eyes darted low, then back upwards, then low, then upwards again. "Yeah, I'm seeing something alright! Plural!"
They giggled; Vanessa's smirk got even cockier as she turned to Mary (she'd had more than a few beers at this point)
"Well sorry Ramon baby, but I have some bad news... I've decided if this marriage doesn't work out, I'm gonna go lesbian. And Mary will be my lover."
Mary snickered so loud she snorted (she was pre-emptively boozed up) and started to join in. "Oooooh I like the sound of that! Cmere and give me some sugar~!"
Ramon's jaw fell to the ground and blood pooled in his nose as Vanessa sank her lips against Mary's neck and started kissing downwards. Mary drew her head back dramatically and moaned in exaggeration:
"OHHH VANESSA! OHHHH! OHHHHYYYYEEEEAHHHHHHHHH~!"
"Hootahjatahootajajajjababahootahjababahaaaaaa..." Ramon was speaking straight up gibberish, as his brain had clearly suffered a malfunction. The two girls stopped, and burst out laughing at this over-the-top reaction; they knew it was slightly mean, but at the same time, they couldn't resist.
The joke officially ended, however, when it attracted the attention of one white-haired luchadora, who stepped in and "rescued" Ramon from their teasing with an arm around his neck.
"Alright skanks, that's enough." she asserted, pulling Ramon closer to her.
The atmosphere quickly turned tense, especially given how much booze had changed hands. Vanessa and Mary eyed her with no shortage of hostility.
"We were just joking, Angel, god." Mary started.
"Well maybe Ramon doesn't think it's very funny, you two edging him all the time." Angel snapped back. "I wouldn't treat him that way. But I guess you get off on knowing you have someone you can drag around by their dick."
Ramon tried to open his mouth, but had no chance.
"And who appointed YOU Ramon's counsel, huh?" Vanessa attacked. "He doesn't need you to speak for him, or take up arms for him. If he has anything to talk about, we're the closest people on the planet to him to share with. We're his PARTNERS."
Ramon again tried to speak-
"I'm his partner too." Angel cut in. "And I think I appreciate Ramon a lot more than you ungrateful hoes do. You take him for granted, then run back home to your perfect little suburban lives. You don't care about his feelings!"
He finally got a few words in. "Uhh can I-"
"Let's go, Ramon."
He was left with no ground, speechless, a single gesticulating arm hanging dead in the air, as Angel dragged him away, leaving Mary and Vanessa staring spitefully the entire time. Seth ended up being the cooler head, stepping in and directing them both out of their hateful gazes and back towards the food.
"What the hell, Angel!"
She opened her mouth, surprised at his targeting of her. "What do you mean, 'what the hell'?! They were being total jerks!"
"That's just the way we joke! It was all in good fun." Ramon responded, his hand half-covering his face.
Angel frowned, folding her arms. "Fun... so toying around with your emotions is fun, huh? FYI, I would never play games like that... "
Her mouth curved, to a catlike grin. "...I'd let you stick it right in."
Ramon yelped, his blood lighting up head to toe in a similar fashion to what he was just feeling a minute ago... but he wasn't going to let Angel's succubus act distract him from making his point. Clearing his throat, he straightened his face and continued.
"Look... we've been over this. Like it or not, THEY are my friends too. You've got to treat them with respect; that's not too much to ask."
"Yeah, well that door better swing both ways." she pointed in his face.
He grabbed her hand, lowering it. "Just be nice. Please. BE. NICE."
She snatched it away, backing up. "Alright, god! I'll fuckin be nice. Just do me a favor and don't hang out with them all day, will ya? You promised you'd spend time with me too."
"Okay!"
Angel was thankfully satisfied... with one last glare, she stomped away, leaving Ramon to exhale a long sigh of relief. Looking up at the sky, he questioned how he ever got in this position... and more specifically, why he couldn't enjoy it.
3:20 PM
"Hey Robert. The hell's that?" Ryo asked, pointing.
He directed his eyes upwards, causing Robert to squint in the bright sun. "I... dunno... some kind of... aircraft- OH it's Ai's balloon. HEY EVERYBODY! YUKI AND AI'S HERE!"
As the object drew closer into the atmosphere, it became more distinguishable: a red NeoGeo balloon, commanded by a gamer girl's extraordinary technology. It didn't take long for it to touch down in a soft, grassy section of the backyard, before de-materializing in a flash of electronic symbols.
"HEY GUYYYYZ WE'RE HEEERE!" Ai came in waving both hands. She was wearing a cute white one-piece, with a large Mars Person logo plastered on her torso area.
Yuki followed, wearing white trunks with a red stripe. "Sorry we're late..." He pointed to his right. "SOMEBODY didn't wanna find a save point on Crystalis!"
Ai puffed out her lip. "I CAN'T HELP IT. THAT GAME IS MY OBSESSION."
Robert chuckled. "Well, it doesn't matter. Come on in, fellas! The food's hot and the drinks are cold! Hein, make em something!"
Hein's glasses flashed as he started to work... but he didn't get far, before a more experienced bartender jumped in and intervened with a stern finger. "HEY HEY HEY. No. Those two are 18, don't serve them."
Yuki and Ai immediately shown faces of disapproval. "Wha? Oh cmonnnnn!"
"Malin's only 18, and she's over there splitting a daquiri with Jenet!" Yuki angrily pointed a few yards away, where the aforementioned pirate and runt had dual straws in a glass, and were happily sipping in unison.
"Malin has no respect for authority." King grunted. "But you two do. So I'm helping you make a responsible decision."
"Sheesh..." Ai grumbled. "Fine, I'll take a soda."
Yuki rubbed his head. "J-just don't drink too much soda... you'll never go to bed tonight..."
"Hey, you're just gonna have to accept the fact that I may stay up until 4 AM playing Mark of the Wolves. So get used to it, PLAYER 2~"
"Oh god..."
3:58 PM
"SHOTS! SHOTS! SHOTS! SHOTS! SHOTS! SHOTS! SHOTS!'
With King's help, Hein cleared the counter of all other obstacles, and had dozens upon dozens of shot glasses lined up, all full of kamikazes: a simple mixture of vodka, triple sec, and a lime garnish.
"Pass em around, pass em arooooound!" Mai sang as thirsty hands reached for glasses, and helped each other acquire their own.
"Make sure Adel and Rose get one."
They passed them around, making sure there was naught an empty hand among them. (Except for Shingo, who reached for one but Beni slapped his hand away)
Gato refused a shot. Iori reluctantly grabbed one, only because Chizuru offered it with coaxing eyes. Iroha took the strange liquid, but they could tell she was unfamiliar with such a concoction.
"Don't worry baby, this'll give you a bigger kick than rice wine." Jenet winked. "A few of these and you'll be feeling juuuust fiiiiiiineeeeeee~"
Iroha smiled nervously, but was still clearly unsure. "Umm... h-hai. Ehehehe..."
Finally, the last two were handed to Adelheid, who graciously accepted, and Rose, who took it with much more indignation.
"Alright, everybody ready?!" Robert led. "BOTTOMS UP!"
A choir of glasses tilted to the sky. Iori was slightly reluctant...but Chizuru nudged him with a cute wink, and he finally gave in and downed it.
Iroha, while nobody was looking, dumped the untrustworthy liquid.
"ONE!"
The empty glasses were passed up front, where King and Hein vigorously replenished until there was enough for a second round. After a fast couple minutes of preparation, the drinks tilted to the sky once more.
"TWO!"
One last rally. One last round. The glasses were passed and refilled in record time, for the final coup de grace, as everyone eagerly downed their third helping and screamed in unison,
"THREEEEEEEEEE!"
A cacophony of wild cheers, whoops and laughter rang out among the partyers, who had well-traversed the realm of loose. The burst fire of shots served as a turning point of sorts...a crossing of the threshold between a spirited but contained party, and something that was only going to get crazier and crazier with each passing hour.
Even Iori was smiling now. They were getting there.
4:12 PM
"Shen Woo?"
"Too much of an oaf."
"Joe?"
"Too obnoxious."
"Beni?"
"Gay."
"Gato?"
"Work in progress."
"Dino."
An exhale. "Well...if I wanna walk funny for a week..."
"Angel?"
"Bitch."
"Vanessa?"
"Mary made a specific point that if anyone tried to bed Vanessa while drunk and vulnerable, she'd kneecap them."
"Well, who else is there? Shingo?"
Jenet turned her nose up. "Ugh, absolutely not, he is a total DOOFUS."
"Aww cmon, Shingo's dumb but... he's cute! Like a little... puppy dog."
"Well, who are YOU going after then?"
Malin began to blush... and her eyes cut over to the bar, where Kensou was nursing yet another drink, his count unknown at this point.
Jenet scoffed. "Seriously? Girl, you need to get over that. You're just gaga because he deflowered you and all."
"I can't help it! A girl never forgets her first time...oooh I've got it bad~" Malin grabbed her cheeks and swooned.
"I swear..."
Their conversation was cut short by a certain magnificent dark-haired Japanese maid walking past them, her insatiable cheeks jiggling behind her with every step, which attracted their eyes like magnets.
"... Bonnie, if you get with that behind my back, I'll never forgive you."
4:25 PM
It was that time again: the annual afterparty volleyball game. This would prove to be an interesting one, given there was already an abundant level of alcohol in their systems... whether this would prove enhancing, stifling, or hilarious, was anyone's guess.
"ALRIGHT GUYS LET'S GO! I'M TEAM CAPTAIN!" Mai was being much louder than necessary.
"I say we do girls vs boys." Vanessa suggested, with a sultry wink towards the male audience.
"Th-that's no fair!" Joe whined. "The girls'll have an unfair advantage!"
"Why?"
"...Do you REALLY need to ask?"
"Cmon Joe, we can beat the ladies. We just gotta get some powerhouses on our side." Ryo turned over to the bar. "YO SILBER! You wanna get in on this?"
The jaded man looked over, unamused. "Pfeh! I'm too old to be playing volleyball."
The man beside him, however, a legendary Shanghai brawler, stood. "I'll step up." Shen Woo downed his current cocktail, slamming the glass on the counter, and proceeded to the court.
"Cmon Gato, we need you!"
The Japanese grump, however, was not as easy a sell, just looking away with no interest.
"Shit."
Benimaru, however, threw his hat in the ring. "I'm in. Shingo, guard my Palmer."
The men's side eventually rounded out to a team of six: Terry, Joe, Shen, Beni, Ryo and Robert. Some of the rejected included Andy, who didn't feel he could concentrate against Mai's wiles. and the King of Dinosaurs, which was unanimously voted would be cheating.
On the women's side, Mai and Yuri were taking the lead, with King being the third to volunteer. "OG WOMEN'S TEAM, BABY!" they screamed in unison with a high five.
"Ummm... ehehe... c-can I play?" Athena nervously laughed, playfully twirling her purple hair.
Yuri eyed her warily. "Hmmm... okay, but you gotta PROMISE not to cheat this time. We're gonna beat those boys clean, no Psycho Power, got it?"
Athena crossed her chest. "No Psycho Power, swear on my goddess."
She yelped, as a hand slapped her from behind, and the voluptuous blonde pirate stepped in with a wink, producing a pink heart. "I'm in, too. Those boys won't be able to concentrate with my lovely self on the court~"
"Get over yourself, bitch. I doubt the boys are interested in the barnacles on your lower deck, if you catch my drift..." Angel was the next to muscle in, rudely shoulder-bumping Jenet aside.
"D-DON'T MAKE UP SHIT ABOUT ME, ANGEL!" the pirate furiously scowled. "I'm totally clean!"
"Clean as me on margarita night, hehehehehe..."
Mai angrily eyed them. "Girls, can we PLEASE coexist long enough to smoke these guys? Now cmon... let's get started!"
Terry, meanwhile, boosted his men's morale. "Cmon guys, we can take em! Just keep your eyes on the ball!"
"Easier said than done..." Joe deadpanned.
"Robbie darling, sorry I have to spank you~" Yuri cooed to her lover across the net.
"It's okay, I'll get you back later." Robert retorted, with a coy grin. Yuri giggled at the subtext.
"HERE WE GO!" Mai leaped up and served it; Terry was there on the return, setting it up for Ryo, who, with an "OSU!" uppercut it back across the net.
"Got it!" Yuri extended her backside and it bounced off her, producing a visible jiggle, and King went airborne with a flying kick that sent it back over. Joe was supposed to be on defense, but he was distracted by Yuri and the ball landed beside his feet.
"POINT!" the women's team jumped up and high-fived in unison.
"Dammit Joe, quit ogling my sister and get in the game!" Ryo slapped him in the back of the head.
"Alright, alright, sorry!" Joe grunted, rubbing the area. "...I may need to join the Kyokugen dojo though, got damn..."
Benimaru, who could be counted on more, served it up and smacked it over. Angel was on defense, intercepting it and serving it up to Jenet.
"SPIKE IT, PLUNDER-BUTT!"
"I'VE GOT IT!" Jenet went airborne and spiked it with a thunderous slap; it soared back down towards Beni, who set it up with his Iaido Kick... for Shen Woo to leap up and deliver a monstrous headbutt.
"KABLAM, BITCH!" his cranium sent it over the net and crashing through Athena and Jenet's guard, who both dived for it and failed. The Shanghai brawler extended his fist, his teammates accepting the gesture with kudos.
"Grrr... REVENGE!" Mai tossed it in the air, and went airborne. "MUSASABI NO MAI!"
The ball soared like a meteor towards Joe, who was only able to stop it with his Tiger Kick. It went airborne...and Robert timed a perfect axe kick, spiking it with impossible precision. Mai and Yuri dived on it, but didn't stand a chance.
"Shit, Robbie... that was good..." Yuri rose to her feet, rubbing her sore backside where she tumbled through the grass.
"YEEAH WE'RE UP!" Terry high-fived Robert, followed by the others.
King had the next serve. She knocked it over to Terry, who responded with "CRACK SHOOT!"
It went back over the net, but Athena was ready. "PSYCHO SWOOOOORD!" She sent it airborne, towards Angel, who leaped up with an enzuigiri, her foot colliding with the ball perfectly and sending it back over the net. Joe dived for it, but missed at the last second.
"Tie game, bitchessssss!" Angel responded with a rather rude gesture, placing her hand between her legs and pulling at air.
At this point it was clear they were evenly matched; Mai was starting to get kind of bored, having no desire to keep banging away back and forth like this for hours on end.
...That's when her eyes wandered around. She captured that big, obnoxious parasol in the distance, and a posh, pompous sunglass-wearing blonde laying there under it. A devious smile began to creep on her lips.
"Hey Kingyyyyyyy..." she spoke with a voice oozing of mischief. "I just got an idea."
She leaned in and whispered to the Frenchwoman, the primo Rose-hater. A few seconds passed, as the words passed between them... and King's expression lit up with pure joy. "Oh my god, YES."
Ryo had the ball, and she called out to him on the other side. "Ryo! HEY RYO! SERVE IT TO ME!"
The Karate man's head tilted. "Uhhh... why?"
"JUST DO AS I SAY!"
Joe grabbed his arm. "Don't listen to her, man! She's trying to intimidate you!"
"JUST TRUST ME!" King yelled with a smile.
Ryo looked around at his teammates... and they could all tell, it was the look of a man who was whipped.
"G-guys, I can't say no to King..."
Shen groaned. "For fuck's sake..."
"OKAY HERE IT COMES!" Ryo warned. He threw it up, and served it to King...
...Who, with the most devious grin imaginable, did a backflip. "TRAP SHOT!"
She only needed the first half of the move, to set up the ball for a spike... and Mai took it from there. "RYU EMBU!"
She whipped around and sent the ball soaring, like a missile...
Beyond the net...
Beyond the players...
...Towards the face of one unaware Rose, who looked up and saw a round projectile of pain coming at her.
"AAAAAAAAH!" she squealed, jumping out of her chair and flopping to the ground, knocking over her drink, her umbrella, and losing her sunglasses...
...She opened her eyes, wondering why she hadn't felt the hit. There was no pain, no darkness. Subsequently, the partygoers all let out a groan of disappointment.
The ball was inches away from her face, but the timely intervention of Adelheid's G Wall had prevented it from striking true, sending the ball back towards them into a harmless collision with the net, where it bounced off and into Shen's arms.
Their "evil plan" squashed, they now had nothing but to be judged by Adelheid's harsh, scolding gaze.
"Well damn... Adelheid's big brother instincts kicked in." Mai cursed.
"I guess he's not gonna let us inflict actual bodily harm on his sister..." King concluded, utterly dejected.
Rose was like a scared cat, clinging to Adelheid, shaking uncontrollably. "TH-TH-THOSE UNCOUTH BARBARIANS! TH-THEY TRIED TO KILL ME! THEY'RE MONSTERS! MONSTERS! W-WE MUST LEAVE IMMEDIATEL- eeep!"
"Shut up, Rose." Adelheid pried her off of him, and made his way over to the group, where the fated deed had been done.
They all tensed up, expecting some brutal form of reprisal from him... but to their relief, he merely cleared his throat, and put on a softer face.
"Listen, guys... I don't mind you pranking Rose here and there, but please don't harm her. I still have a duty, and regardless of what she did in Munich... I can't stop being her brother."
They all looked either away or down, even the most spiteful of them now feeling a tinge of guilt. Now that his words had taken root, the epiphany hit that they essentially tried to assault the man's sister in front of him. Even for a woman as cruel as Rose... it was a little harsh. Would they have done it without the artificial courage of alcohol fueling them... that was a question to be pondered.
"W-well geez, when you put it that way... sorry, Adel." Mai rubbed her head shamefully. "I guess I got a little carried away there."
"There was no harm done." Adelheid nodded politely. "I'm grateful for the apology."
Away he walked, back to his chair and parasol, and while he felt no different, the Bernstein noble's overwhelming aura of civility had humbled them all, leaving them to rethink their Rose revenge scheme altogether. It was a sobering moment for their stallion-wild lack of inhibitions.
"Man... Adelheid's such a gentleman." Athena spoke, with a hint of awe in her voice.
"That apple fell so damn far from that wicked tree." Mai spoke in similar reverence. "I feel bad now. How about you, Kingy?"
"Yeah, a little. I still would've done it, though."
"Woooo~!" Jenet spun around, slightly tipsy, eventually stumbling against the bar, where Gato sat. With a combination of the group shots, and the rum she had consumed, she was on the right end of intoxication.
"That was a pretty great game, huh?"
As predicted, he said nothing, just looked ahead. He absentmindedly dug into the nearby bowl of peanuts, cracking one with ease and popping it in his mouth.
"I looked good out there. Did you see that one spike? I think my tits completely popped out, heeheehee~".
"Hm."
Jenet frowned; she felt herself losing ground. Feeling she had nothing to lose, she decided to go for the kill.
"Hey Gato, I was thinking about getting some tattoos in certain places, and I wanted to show you and see what you think. But we can't do it here, in front of everyone, if you... catch my-"
"Get Tizoc to do it." he turned further away, popping another peanut.
Jenet was crushed. She extended her bottom lip and pouted with exaggeration...but still he ignored her. Finally, with a sigh, she spoke solemnly.
"Gato...I'm happy that you got your sister back, but that doesn't mean you can't still pay attention to me."
His fist clenched... immediately, all the peanuts in his hand crumbled to pieces. "WHEN are you going to understand...I'm not what you want me to be."
Jenet seemed genuinely shocked. She clearly wasn't used to guys saying no to her.
"I don't understand you... you've always been so cold to me. But there was that one time, in Munich... I thought I had really gotten through to you."
He finally turned, giving her the least courtesy of his eyes. "I was vulnerable. You comforted me when I was in a dark place, and for that I'm grateful... but that doesn't change anything. You want a kindred spirit? Look elsewhere. It's not me."
"Gato..." she called his name one last time, in vain.
"Just go. Please. I want to be alone."
Though the pirate woman was persistent in getting what she wanted, even Bonne Jenet knew she was defeated here. Hanging herself in disappointment, she turned and walked away. Her moping earned the attention of Malin, who was pretty much the opposite, given the amount she had been allowed to take in.
"Bonnie? What's wrong?"
A sigh. "Oh nothing... Gato dumped me."
"Wait... "dumped you"? I think you're giving yourself too much cred-"
"Shut uuuuuuuuuuuuupppppp."
5:15 PM
MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS - THRIFT SHOP
CLICK! CLICK! CLICK! CLICK!
While it was still bright out, they wanted to make sure to get as many pictures as humanly possible, for social media. The world had to know the scale of this party's epicness, and obliquely taste the memories only these fighters had the luxury of experiencing.
CLICK! Ryo and Terry flexing their abnormally large beach bods.
CLICK! Ryo and Robert standing arm in arm, grinning it up.
CLICK! The Lone Wolves striking a classic pose that used to be on the original King of Fighters posters. A throwback to their glory days.
CLICK! A group shot of Terry, Andy, Joe, Ryo, and Robert, timeless friends, standing together.
CLICK! Benimaru, a natural in front of a camera, flashed a model smile... Shingo was next to him with an obnoxious eyes-closed grin, with bunny ears behind the blonde's head. Since Beni's hair was wet, the fingers were visible.
CLICK! Shingo punching Shen Woo in the arm with a goofy smile, the blonde brawler barely registering it.
CLICK! Shingo subsequently wincing in pain, as Shen Woo's fist delivered much more impact.
CLICK! Shen Woo and King of Dinosaurs standing back to back, flexing their arms upwards.
CLICK! Silber and Dino in an arm wrestling match on the bar counter; Silber's face was wincing in struggle, whereas Dino's face couldn't be read, leaving his strain ambiguous.
CLICK! Ramon grinning, attempting to put Seth in a headlock, but the larger man was too difficult to pull down.
CLICK! Ramon was on the receiving end, courtesy of Dino, who nearly crushed the poor man under his armpit, while flexing his free arm.
CLICK! Seth and Vanessa stood side by side, pumping a single fist in the air... a throwback to their debuting year of 1999.
CLICK! Yuki smiling, mid-glomp by a vibrant Ai.
CLICK! Angel had an arm around the necks of Ramon and Dino, pulling them against her bosom in a glorified headlock. She smiled wide, while Ramon seemed more in discomfort. Dino's face was neutral, of course.
CLICK! Terry and Mary embraced, smiling.
CLICK! Terry with his lips under her jawline, Mary in mid-laugh.
CLICK! Mary with a kiss on his cheek, her hands on his pectorals.
CLICK! Mai and Andy with their arms around each other, Mai forcing his head backwards with an intense kiss.
CLICK! Andy holding a smiling Mai bridal style, her leg protruding upwards. Her rear curvature was bulging out of his lower hand.
CLICK! Mai with a sultry look towards the camera, her arms around Andy's neck, her leg thrown over his waist. She was seductively biting his earlobe. Andy's hand rest below her thigh, gripping it generously.
CLICK! Robert smiling wide, as Yuri leaned in and planted a kiss under his eye, her back deliberately to the camera.
CLICK! Robert and Yuri smiling, their heads against each other.
CLICK! Yuri flashing a sultry grin to the camera as her body pressed against Robert's, his hand squeezing her left butt cheek, lifting it upward. Takuma would have a stroke on that one.
CLICK! King pressed against Ryo, a deep kiss on his cheek.
CLICK! Ryo held a laughing King bridal-style, easily hoisting her high with his great strength.
CLICK! The OG Women's Team standing side by side, Yuri in the middle, flanked by her two taller counterparts, their arms around her.
CLICK! Yuri glomping her best friend, the taller Frenchwoman wrapped around her with a smile.
CLICK! Yuri and Mai with their heads turned, flashing sexy winks. Their backs were to the camera, their hands playfully gripping the respective rear next to them.
CLICK! A close-up of Yuri's face, staring in exaggerated surprise at Mai's incredible ass, which she was face level with. She gripped it with both hands, the meat bulging in her fingers.
CLICK! The same shot, except now Mai's face was next to a close up of the karate babe's booty. The ninja smiled at the camera, her cheek pressed against Yuri's "cheek".
CLICK! Mary and Vanessa hugging, smiling at the camera cheek-to-cheek.
CLICK! A very happy Ramon with a toothy grin, his arms around Vanessa and Mary, who flanked him respectively.
CLICK! A shot of the Agent Team completely together, with Seth and Ramon on the outside, Mary and Vanessa on the inside.
CLICK! After an INCREDIBLE amount of coaxing...Iori was dragged in to get a team shot with his old one-time mates, Vanessa, Seth, and Ramon. He of course didn't smile.
CLICK! Jenet was mid-giggle from the result of an aggressive glomp from Malin, the shorter girl's face halfway in her boobs.
CLICK! A genuine, romantic, mutual lip lock between Malin and the pirate queen of whom she'd become infatuated.
CLICK! A winking Bonne Jenet was leaned over, facing the camera, her lips in a seductive pout, as a pink heart was captured mid-flutter. Her bikini top was undone, the straps hanging down at her sides, and a blushing Malin was holding her breasts up, keeping the purple fabric intact enough to conceal her nipples.
CLICK! Jenet had the camera up in a classic selfie pose, holding up a peace sign. In the far corner of the photo, an uninterested Gato looked down at the counter.
CLICK! Chizuru's shining elegance was captivated on camera, her hands running through her raven hair as she flashed her sparkling whites.
CLICK! An embarrassed Chizuru blushed with a grin, as she was sandwiched between the bodies of Mai and King, faces against hers.
CLICK! Angel lowered her eyes enticingly, protruding her lips in a pseudo duck-face, her arm tucked underneath her chest to emphasize her already-bursting bosom even more.
CLICK! The Dino King stood tall and powerful, flexing both arms... Jenet and Malin were hanging off the left, Angel and an astonished Ai on the right.
CLICK! A snickering Shingo had cut a hole in a bottle of water, and squirted Iori in the face; the latter was mid-wince, with a scowl that spoke of murder.
CLICK! An ecstatic Malin with her arm around Athena, who... managed the best smile she could.
CLICK! A much happier Athena, flashing an adorable open-mouth smile next to Iori, who tried his best to not look like an asshole.
CLICK! Athena showed off her modeling chops with multiple pictures: notably one with her hand in her hair and a sexy pout, that got Kensou's eyes looking.
CLICK! A frontal shot of Mai leaned over the bar, her chest squishing against the counter, her head propped on her hand... this one would have to have a spoiler tag.
CLICK! Mai laid out prone atop the counter, from a side view, followed by a bird's eye view that encapsulated the curvature of her ass from above.
CLICK! Yuri did it next, and looked just as desirable.
CLICK! King laid out on the counter, on her side, facing the camera with her head propped, a bottle of red wine pressed to her lips.
CLICK! A bird's eye view of Jenet laid atop the counter, on her back, tilting a bottle of white wine over her chest. The liquid was captured mid-pour landing on top of her cleavage.
CLICK! A subsequent picture of Malin on top of her, her tongue lapping it up.
CLICK! It took explaining to the Japanese maid about digital imagery and social media... at first she was reluctant, but finally, after some persuading, Iroha allowed herself to be shot naturally, facing the camera with a solemn expression.
CLICK! They convinced her to get a little sexier, so Iroha stood with her chest protruded, hands resting on her stomach and thigh.
CLICK! The one EVERYONE wanted to see... Iroha with her back to the camera, the entirety of her epic rear meat eating the lower half of the photo, her face cutting a side view. The redness of her face was very visible, but she managed a shy smile.
CLICK! To give the viewers one last taste of envy, Yuri, Mai, King, Mary, Vanessa, Angel, and Jenet all stood with their back to the camera, standing at posture, to accentuate their butts with peak curvature. They tried to get Iroha to join in, but the maid was much too flustered from the pictures of her already taken.
CLICK! They managed to snag a picture of Adel and Rose... though neither smiled for the camera, and their red eyes glowed ominously underneath the shade of their parasol. The two agreed to take a better one, in the sunlight, before quickly returning.
CLICK! Chizuru holding a reluctant Iori's arm, appearing to be mid-pull.
CLICK! Chizuru had her arm around Iori, with an eyes-closed toothy grin, flashing a horizontal peace sign between her eye. Iori wasn't smiling...but he wasn't frowning either.
These were only a few among the hundreds more taken... enough memories to archive this legendary night for the unfortunate masses who never got to witness it in person.
5:40 PM
Kensou was drunk.
Not drunk enough to be out of control of his actions, but just drunk enough to have elevated emotions...and given the current circumstances in his life, he was an angry drunk. It was manifesting in a very bad, very dangerous way...
Dangerous for him, that is.
He was cutting eyes at one Iori Yagami, carefully studying the actions of the Yasakani heir...he had finally loosened up, and was smiling, chatting, even laughing with the others. They couldn't have been more delighted, as Iori was typically the hardest rock to chisel in any sort of social setting.
The only problem was...he was chatting with her.
His eyes shifted; she was saying something unreadable, and he responded, and she laughed. She looked so...happy. The wider she smiled, the angrier he got. He was handsome, a powerful fighter, had a bigger destiny than him, and was a total asshole. What right did he have to ruin the ONE good thing Kensou had going in his life?
Angry thoughts evolved into angry movements. The slamming of an empty glass led to Kensou leaving his seat, which led to him stumbling forward, before Shen Woo even had a chance to try and stop him.
"Wh-whoa dude, DUDE! Sie, what are you...?"
Too late. Nothing was going to stop his sloppy, plodding trajectory towards a man that was becoming his enemy more and more in his muddled eyes.
Iori had opened his mouth once again, but Kensou was close enough to cut him off.
"Hey! Who the hell do you think you are?!"
Being the first hint of actual drama, everything appropriately screeched to a halt. Everyone stopped moving, voices ceased, and it took a few more seconds for someone to shut the music off.
All eyes were on the center of the beef, an angry Kensou standing before a sitting Iori, who looked up and realized he was the one being targeted.
Athena tried to intervene. "Kensou, what are you-"
"Yeah I'm talking to you, asshole!" he shouted. "Sitting there like you're such hot shit. What gives you the right to talk to my girl, huh?"
That sharp note produced gasps, followed by murmurs. Athena herself was understandably shocked.
"W-wha, Kensou! What do you mean, "your girl?"
Iori, who had been silent up to this point, finally opened his mouth in retaliation. "The fuck is your problem?"
Shen tried to extend a quelling hand, but Kensou shrugged it off. "YOU'RE my fucking problem! You could have any pussy on the planet, and you have to come after the girl I love! Nothing's ever good enough for you is it, Mr. Hotshot Rockstar, huh?"
Athena stepped forward assertively. "Kensou, I don't know what you think is going on, but you're acting like a jackass-"
"STAY OUT OF THIS, ATHENA!" he violently screamed, which stunned her... and actually got her a little misty eyed.
Iori was on his feet at this point, and Chizuru was officially in panic mode. "No no no no..."
They were face to face, and Iori spoke. "Don't blame your domestic problems on me, loser. And you better watch yourself, before I kick the dumpling out of your guts."
"IORI-" Chizuru tried to grab him, but he didn't budge.
"I'm not scared of you!" Kensou spat back, fueled by liquid courage. "I'll fight you right here and now! Teach you to quit dipping your wick whenever you fucking please!"
"Don't blame me because you can't put the chopsticks down long enough to strap on your balls, pussy."
"Iori, STOP IT...!"
But Chizuru's plea was too late; the next seconds were a blur, as Kensou cocked back and unleashed a sloppy right hook, which Iori easily sidestepped...and the boy's drunken momentum carried him on a collision course with the table Iori had been sitting at. The whole thing went belly-up, complete with whatever drinks had been placed upon it.
Athena was full on tears at this point. "KENSOU WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Chizuru already had two arms on Iori before he could make a single move. "Iori, NO. Please...no."
To his credit...the famously violent man was handling it incredibly well. He remained idle where he stood, not showing signs of taking an aggressive step. He turned to Chizuru, snatching his arm free. "What? I'm not gonna do anything. Fuck him."
With those reassuring words... Chizuru's nerves settled, and she allowed Iori to walk away.
Kensou, meanwhile, was still showing signs of continuing, though he struggled to get back up. Malin jumped in with a timely save.
"Oooooookaaaaaaay, cmon Slugger. Let's get you out of here before you make a big fucking mistake. I got him, guys."
With Malin helping Kensou towards the house and Iori walking off to go find Athena, the situation was, for the moment, settled. Peace had returned to the proceedings, and a silent prayer was shared among them, that that would be the only blemish of the night.
While Kensou was being tended to by Malin, Iori took it upon himself to be the one to check on Athena's well-being. She wasn't full-on crying, just drying fallen tears between a few lingering sniffles. Obviously, the initial energy of the moment had upset her, but that was thankfully as worse as it got.
"You okay?" He opened with the obvious.
She wiped her remaining wetness away. "I'm fine...thank you. Kensou just...sniff...he's just so... urgh."
"Yeah, I get it."
One last sniffle, before she spoke. "Thank you, for not... hurting him."
Iori rolled his eyes. "Yeah. Because that's what everyone expects of me, right?"
"N-no no! I didn't mean it like that! I just meant, thank you for not fighting back. Kensou doesn't mean any harm. He just..."
"He's confused." Iori finished.
"Very. And I guess...I am too. A lot of times, I don't know how to feel about him. Sometimes I think I love him; and I'm even attracted to him. But other times... especially when he acts like THIS... urghhhhfffff!"
The vocal from her mouth was much louder and funnier than Iori anticipated... maybe it was the drinks, but he almost wanted to laugh. Especially the way she punched the air angrily.
"Emotions are confusing, I know. I'm the same way about...well anyways, I'm sure you'll figure it out." he stifled himself and reassured. "I know it's weird to say, but I think Kensou's the guy for you."
Athena laughed obnoxiously. "Yeah, so people keep saying! I guess it's kinda... boring that fate went ahead and laid that out for me. I guess that's why I got such a thrill out of you. Especially when you...uh...you know."
Iori blinked and turned away, slightly flustered. "OH. Uhh well uhh... Well believe me, I had my own reasons for doing that. In a similar vein as yours."
Athena giggled nervously. "Y-yeah... it was nice. Well, thanks for checking on me."
They started to separate. Iori didn't know what compelled him to say what he said next, but the easy answer was that his tongue was WAY looser.
"This may be drinks talking but...how WAS Kensou?"
Athena laughed out loud. That WAS a very alcohol-influenced question...and she was drunk enough to answer it.
"He finished in minutes, and he's clueless on giving a girl an orgasm. Basically...the opposite of you."
Iori laughed, for the first time that night. "He'll get there."
ONE OF ROBERT'S MANY BEDROOMS...
"Kensou duuuuuuuuuuude what the fuck were you thinking?" Malin laughed through words at a visibly frustrated Kensou, who lay on the bed with his head in his hand.
"God, I can't believe I did that..." he groaned, a long, exaggerated noise.
She gave a playful butt-flop onto the bed, next to him. "You hurt?"
He shook his head. "Nah...just pissed off. I feel so helpless. I don't know the right moves to make... nothing I do ever comes out right. And I just make things worse between us..."
"I mean, what did you think was gonna happen?" Malin asked rhetorically. "You and Iori were gonna have some showdown in Robert's backyard for the popstar's honor? I know you managed to score with her one time on that bravado shit, but...this wasn't quite the same. You made yourself the bad guy."
Kensou narrowed his eyes. "How do you know about that?"
Malin shrugged. "I WAS there last year, you know, even if I didn't compete. Word about that stuff gets around, and I'm especially nosy on Athena matters."
Kensou swatted dismissively. "Doesn't matter anyway...I've really blown it. Things between us are worse than ever."
Malin gave him a friendly shoulder check. "Hey, don't sweat it, man. Look on the bright side... you're a constant in Athena's life, and vice versa. That means no matter what, you'll always have a chance. And sincerely...I'm rooting for you."
Kensou's anger lessened. "Really? You mean that?"
Malin grinned. "Swear to god. Look, I want my girl to be happy...but I like you, and I want you to be happy too. Plus, the fanbase has a pretty powerful Psycho Dragon ship. They'd like to see it happen."
"What about...?" Kensou dared not finish that question.
"Ummm ehehehe..." Malin chuckled. "Well, they're called ship wars for a reason. But don't worry, I think Iori's interested in other women anyway."
"God, Iori..." Kensou groaned. "I upset Athena, and she probably ran to him for comfort. Stupid..."
"Yeah, you blew that one. He's probably fucking her silly right now."
"Goddammit Malin..."
Malin laughed. "Sorry, sorry."
In a flash, she changed tunes... dropping her eyes to a sultry look, she scooted closer beside him, until they were completely touching.
"But hey...as long as things are the way they are right now, you could have some...fun~"
Kensou picked up on the cue without even seeing her bedroom eyes, and retreated inches. "Oh my god, were you just being nice to me so I'll-"
"No no, I meant it!" Malin defended. "I swear I was being sincere...and I'm being sincere now. Why don't you just let loose...and have some fun. There's zero consequences tonight. Nothing matters! So there's nothing preventing you and I from doing a little..."
Kensou groaned, but didn't back away any further. "Oh god...I can't believe this is happening..."
Malin poured it on further, truly shooting her shot. "Aww you make it sound like a bad thing. Cmoooooonnnnnn...it's a party. Go wild. Make some mistakes~"
Kensou just leaned back and groaned, massaging his forehead. He was clearly drunk, but in the worst possible way... lucid, and willing to entertain bad ideas, be it somersaulting off a table, or joyriding, or...
Malin, with a cat-like grin, got off the bed and started dancing sensually, clumsily running her hands down her waist. "If you want my booooodyy and you think I'm seeeeexxy come on sugar tellll meee sooooooooo~"
Kensou let out an embarrassing snort and burst into laughter, as if he needed no further evidence of his inebriation. Malin grinned wider and closed distance between them.
"Oop, you laughed, that means you're into ittttt..."
By the time Kensou straightened up and resumed focus, Malin was right up against him...their faces inches apart. Every molecule of inhibition that typically prevented him from doing things against the long-term graces of the girl he loved were long-absent, and unable to be beckoned back.
...Well, it was a party.
Kensou made the final push and their lips locked. Malin moaned into his mouth and surrendered her footing, falling into a clumsy straddling of his lap, and her arms wrapped around him, at the same time his slid around her waist and pulled her deeper into him. They collapsed backwards, Malin relentlessly attacking his mouth as her full weight prevented any avenues of reconsidering.
30 MINUTES LATER...
An exhausted Kensou lay dead-weight, one leg hanging off the bed, dazed eyes staring listlessly at the ceiling. His mouth hung open, unable to properly close.
A naked Malin lay sprawled out on top of him, looking INCREDIBLY satisfied.
NEXT CHAPTER: The final act! Things get truly wild and crazy, as the sun goes down and drinks have reached their peak! Will more things get destroyed? Will more people get lucky? TUNE IN AND FIND OUT!
