(no subject)

[espersions]

Who: espersions, belfire, moribound, popsometags, their cr, their cr's cr...
When: Early April
Where: Source Below: Cerealia's most surreal karaoke bar
What: How do you come to terms with death and disappearance? Get hammered and sing about it, obviously.
Rating/Warning: alcohol, hot tubs, death mentions, and j-pop


Ket Whiss is gone for good, and Minato has returned from his PLAYER ONE GAME OVER moment, courtesy of a hungry monster. And there's the residual trauma of everyone's jungle/elemental adventures.

So, well. Why not have a party?

Source Below is Cerealia's most popular — and most surreal — karaoke bar. It features a costume closet, with hundreds of outfits to try on, for that full idol experience. There are themed rooms: one with overflowing candy, another built to resemble the interior of a spaceship, one full of robotic cats who yowl in time with the music, to a pitch-black room filled with pairs of enormous, glowing, slowly-blinking eyes....

But Team Catastrophe's party isn't in any of these, because none of these losers made a reservation. Instead, they got stuck with the only one left, covered in white tile, with a hot tub in the center.

This is a bad idea on so many levels, but it's not as if that's ever stopped anybody.

(ooc: open to any extended cr, feel free to handwave how you heard about it. the more the merrier!)

---

Comments

Current Condition: Sober yet naked

[belfire]

[As they say, misfortune comes in threes, or fours - fifths, maybe, but who's keeping count after the jungle insanity? Whatever the number, the fact remained that Kaz had pinballed from one emotional dilemma to the point where he simply didn't have the capacity to be upset anymore. Or, rather, he was upset, but didn't have the energy to deal with it like a healthy, emotionally stable human being, and decided that, yes, alcohol, karaoke, and a hot tub combined was the best way to deal with Ket's permanent disappearance.

In short: Kazuya had jumped into the hot tub within the first five minutes. Naked, of course]

This is amaaaaazing~ [Kazuya was splashing about happily in the water before lounging against the very edge of it, picking up a "complementary" bottle of...] Whoa, this wine looks expensive. Are they gonna charge us if we drink it?

[...well, Hyoubu's footing the bill...]

Hey, who wants to start this karaoke night with a bang? [He held the wine bottle aloft, waving it from side to side] It's scientifically proven that alcohol improves the karaoke experience by 100%!

1/2

[espersions]

[ He'd only gotten as far as taking his socks off, by the time he heard a splash and...

Kaz is naked. Of course he is. Somebody has to carry on the naked tradition, now that Ket is gone. And what's that he's waving around — ?

Yeah, no. That wine is expensive. It's idiotic to drink it, the "complimentary" wine is always terribly overpriced. Also, glass near a hot tub is a bad idea. Actually, electronics near a hot tub is a bad idea. Everything about this is a bad idea.... ]

[espersions]

[ Eh, fuck it. ]

Go ahead. Anything to make your singing less painful to listen to.

[ A bit of glancing about, and he finds a corkscrew. He lobs it over. ]

Catch!

[ Throwing sharp objects is a great idea, right? ]

[popsometags]

[ Rinne's been eyeing the hot tub so much, wanting so badly to jump in. It's been so rare for him to go to an onsen over the course of his life, and even if it's not the same thing, it would inspire feelings just like that. Rinne held onto the towel around his waist, brushing his fingers against the surface of the water.

But, he was soon distracted by the other guy holding the wine bottle. No, the fact that he's naked isn't the problem here. The problem is-- ]

Can... can we even justify having such an extravagant drink?

[senseandcecilbility]

[You know, when your are the kind of employee who bets on equines named Featherfoot Lollipop, and burns your young master's sofa while smiting demonic messiahs you've got to work extra hard to make it do. Fortunately, Source Bellow needed a few more waiters on this particularly busy evening, and Kevin thought, why not? Being a waiter is just like being a butler's sprout, if butlers had sprouts, and it is not like he is a complete stranger to choir boys singing like harpies drowning in lava.

So here he is, black suit and white gloves, balancing an absurd but somewhat tempting amount of alcohol on a silver tray, just as ordered by the suckers who got that room nobody ever wants. He preparers his most professional and disinterested smile before opening the door and...

Well, perhaps it is time to reconsider his career choices.]

What sort of debauchery is that?

[That was intended as a rhetorical question, but it really isn't. He is, in fact, very confused.]

Current Condition: he could pee vodka

[belfire]

Kevvy!!

[This is what debauchery it is: a naked Kazuya waving frantically from his position in the hot tub, face ruddy from alcohol, with a veritable fortress of empty bottles built before him. You could only see from the shoulders up - probably for the best, really. No one wanted to see his scrawny, partially scarred body]

You came! I didn' know you were invited! [Because he wasn't] Hey, hey, c'mere and have a- oh, you brought drinks. That's initi- inishi... smart! We're runnin' out of 'em! Pull up a... um, hot tub rim or, even a hot tub! Jump in, Kevvy!

1/2

[espersions]

[ He might be drunk, but he's not completely out of his mind, which means that he's not going to risk electrocution while singing Cher's "If I Could Turn Back Time," so he's currently out of the tub and standing on a folded towel to keep his feet dry.

However this is the towel that, by rights, ought to be around his waist, but that's okay because it's really warm and steamy in here. He's not the least bit cold.

— until, that is, the door opens behind him, letting in a blast of chilly air. He casts an irritable glance over his shoulder... which is when he realizes what it is he isn't wearing. A beat later, he recognizes their waiter: Penguin-san.

... ]

[popsometags]

[ Oh no. Oh no no no, somebody's ordered a butler. This is completely out of the question, and since there are many drunk people here, somebody's got to take the reins and make sure everything is in tiptop shape! So, Rinne immediately points, swiveling around!

...a little too fast, so that somehow, his towel gets unhooked, and falls right to the floor. ]

There's no debauchery here! Don't worry about us!

[ Please, don't throw them out yet. ]

[adminproof]

[And showing up right next to Kevin without a sound but with a similar tray of drinks in hand, is Saiduq. ...Well, the drinks and tray are slightly floating above his hand too. So much for not using his "suspicious powers" in public, or a venue as (thankfully) private as this one is.

He doesn't even work here. Why is he here? it is a mystery.mp3]

...What debauchery?

[His standards may be...slightly...skewed...]

[popsometags]

[ To say things have been rough for the entire group was an understatement. Between one of them dying, seemingly coming back in someone's whacked-out imagination, reappearing for real, another one of them dying, one finally disappearing for good, ViViD, the jungle, etc etc...

Well, if Rinne was of age, he'd be hitting the wine pretty hard right about now. As it was, here he was trying his hardest to pretend not to let everything bother him. He'd been working fairly hard, and the least he could do was unwind.

And ignore the wine. No, seriously. Anything that he wasn't sure if they had actually paid for, he's not touching. Hell, he's never been able to go to a place like this before, so while he's extremely giddy, he's also a little nervous. Even moreso when he catches a glimpse of the microphone, certainly approaching a wet spot on the floor. ]

Oi--! [ He immediately snatches it up, certainly unhappy! ]

Be careful with that! They'll make us pay for it if we break it!

[espersions]

[ Oh wow. This kid is the adult in the room. He's reminded, with a stab of painful nostalgia, of Magi, who has been middle-aged ever since he was a young teenager. ]

Good point!

[ He claps Rinne on the shoulder and beams at him, with the brilliance of a stage spotlight. ]

I appoint you in charge of keeping the equipment safe and dry! You never know what can happen.

[good_ideas]

[A karaoke party (even if it was one where a lolicon would be present) was always welcome, especially because Shiho had an inkling that life hadn’t been exactly all roses and happiness for everyone lately.
But that doesn’t mean she and Kaoru couldn’t decide to show up fashionably late, dressed cutely and expecting to have a good time.

The first indication that there was anything wrong should have been when they were directed to what Shiho can read as “the hot-tub room”. What.

Unless there are scantily clad cute girls involved, Kaoru would prefer if the hot-tub was only metaphorical (what kind of metaphor would it even be. Kaoru?)

Still, maybe it’s not as weird as it sounds?]

Kaoru-chan….I’m scared of opening this door. [Not really, but Shiho’s hand is on the doorknob and she can see everything going on in the room.]

...I’m sure it’s nothing bad.

[Hearing that, Shiho lets go and steps away with a bright smile.]

How about you open it then, Kaoru-chan?

[Okay. Sure. She opens the door and what does she see? Why it’s…]

(ooc: Replies will be coming from both Kaoru queenofminiskirts and Shiho good_ideas.)

1/2

[popsometags]

[ A young man, wearing a towel wrapped tightly around his waist, with his back to the door, singing along to a song he may have heard before. He's not great, about a 7/10, but it's more him trying to mimick out the actions he may have also seen before, lost in his performance. ]

--point in time, atop the ring we arrive upon... I'm not too good at staying up late,
but is it okay if I wait up a bit so that I can see you?

[ At this point in his performance, he turns around a bit. ]

It's about time you noticed already!

[ As does he. At that very moment. ]

[popsometags]

[ The music keeps playing, but his singing stops-- the only reason he doesn't drop the mic is because there's a ton of water around and he's in charge of making sure the mic isn't broken. ]

--Ah.

[ NOBODY SAID THERE WOULD BE GIRLS HERE. ]

Current Condition: Still naked and mildly intoxicated

[belfire]

[Kazuya returning to his choir boy days. Naked, of course.

Thankfully, thankfully, he was still in the hot tub, so there was some decency there, but he was practically half out of it with how he was leaning over the edge of it, a worrying amount of empty glasses scattered about in front of him. He didn't have a microphone, though music was playing, his eyes closed as he sang with a surprisingly lovely, well-projected voice.

He didn't do ten years of choir for nothing, girls!]

--I call out these prayers to the sky, heavy with thought, to see your face...
I carry these memories inside, thoughts of a soul, coloured by love...
See me grow wings and fly high, passions will die down below...
I burn in a basin of fire-

[He stopped abruptly, having opened his eyes and caught a glimpse of Kaoru and Shiho both. There was just a pause, one where Kaz stared at them, still half-sprawled out of the hot tub and made only decent by the fact that his position right up against the edge of the hot tub juuuuust about prevented this entire scene being rated 18+]

Oh. Hey Mimi! Kaoru! [He lifted his hand and beckoned them inside happily] You came to do karaoke too? Well come on in and pull up a hot tub! We've got drinks and music going~

[espersions]

[ Prior to this evening, if you'd asked him, he'd have said he didn't drink. It's a bad habit and pointless besides: he has too many sorrows to drown. But the stresses of the last few weeks have added up and he thought, what's the worst that can happen?

Fast-forward to this moment, on the wrong side of drunken giddiness. He seems to have set aside all misgivings about electrocution, as he's sitting languidly in the hot tub, holding the microphone, and singing country music. Hank Williams, specifically: ]

Hear that lonesome whippoorwill?
He sounds too blue to fly.
The midnight train is whining low:
I'm so lonesome I could cry.

[ Somebody put him out of his misery. Or film this for posterity/blackmailing purposes. Don't drink, kids! ]

[good_ideas]

[If Shiho had known how this was all going to turn out, she would have brought a better video camera. As it is though, she makes do with her CereVice, training it on Hyoubu and his misery.]

What, no theme song this time?

[If he weren't so drunk, there would be Words. Minamoto-like words about responsibility and taking care of himself and talking it out like well-adjusted people. But for now, she keeps those to herself, content with taking her frustrations out by compiling a list of scenes that needed to make it into her karaoke party highlights video.]

Because Hyoubu's life sucks.

[queenofminiskirts]

[She thought Hyoubu showing up claiming to be the student council president was weird...singing emo songs in a hot tub made that look normal.

She's at once worried and a bit weirded out.]

Kyousuke...I'm not sure that's safe.

Status: Kind of Really Drunk, but clothed

[moribound]

[Minato on the other hand has been belting out optimistic-seeming songs such as this one and he's in the middle of deciding whether to go for another round when he hears what Hyoubu's singing. It sounds almost wrong to him even though his face's flushed and he's seeing double by now, finding it hard to forget the incident at the jungle.

Normally Minato would just be concerned and worried for him, but the problem with alcohol is that it tends to reduce one's inhibitions and inclines them to questionable choices, such as walking over to the hot tub with a determined frown and making an attempt to lighten the mood by using a silly name- thanks, Kaoru.]

That's no good, Albus Dumble-bu. That song will just make everyone upset and you need to cheer up too! [Hey, there was an attempt. No one said he was good at this!]

[moribound]

[Between repressed memories, hospital visits that were painful for more reasons than one, Ket saying that he knows Minato didn't trust him and him vanishing for good just a while after, things have gotten inwardly stressful for Minato by this point that he's not even going to comment on the suspicious hot tub in the karaoke lounge Hyoubu's brought the lot of them to, figuring that the esper probably just has questionable if harmless tastes.

That's his first mistake.

The second and bigger mistake by far is downing some of the provided alcohol in spite of knowing that it tends to make for loose tongues- There's no drinking age limit at Cerealia after all, and lurking somewhere deep inside his mind is the thought that he's never going to be old enough.

...Five minutes later he's standing facing the tub and singing a song like this:

If I’m going to get hurt otherwise, I’d rather stay as I am
But because I met you
I found myself
Your voice, your weakness, your gaze
Even the bold front you put up, and that smile of yours - those will become my wings

Strange how Minato's smiling giddily with a flushed face, or maybe not since it's steamy in here but he's not so far gone as to strip.]

Current Condition: Forever naked and soberish

[belfire]

You're doing great, Minny!

[Kazuya, of course, was finding this absolutely amazing. He'd never seen Minny look so cheerful before since the jungle event, and what type of friend would he be if he didn't encourage this no doubt healthy mood rise? So here he was, Minny's personal, naked cheerleader, clapping his hands along to the beat of the song with one full empty bottle of alcohol situated in front of him]

Yeah - oh, dance! Daaaance~ Daaaance~

[adminproof]

[Here Minato, have some polite (and genuine) clapping for that performance, from someone sitting nearby and who was definitely not there before he started singing.]

Status: Sober, half-clothed, and for some reason, in the hot tub with pants on

[covenantal]

[ How did this evening happen to him so much?

Minato invited him out to karaoke, and he wasn't so much a shut-in lately as to refuse an offer like that. If Minato could go, so could he. He knew he needed to get back out into the world, no matter how down he'd been feeling about everything that had happened. Making an effort to see people that weren't just his closest friends would probably do him some good. The deaths and injuries on his conscience... continuing to dwell on them wouldn't make him feel any better. A night of fun would probably help.

He chooses not to drink, because he knows his tolerance is low at best. He got drunk off fumes once, it was an absolute shitshow. Besides, he wants to stay sober once he realizes Minato is going to drink, just in case.

And yet, somehow, partway into the night, not only does he end up yanked into the hot tub, he only manages to get his shirt and shoes off before that happens.

So now he's chilling in the hot tub, with his pants on, and you know what? This is fine. It's whatever, these weren't his best pants anyway. His hair is plastered to his face, too, because he got proper dunked, but that is also whatever. Everything is whatever. He's chill.

Yu leans on the side of the tub with his arms folded, artfully avoiding the many and various bottles of alcohol and watching whoever is up singing with a smile on his face. To no one in particular: ]

You know, I heard of karaoke bars like this in Toyko, but I'd never been to one myself.

Current Condition: Blood is 60% alcohol, pants are currently missing

[belfire]

Well, you have now!

[Unfortunately, it was a naked Kazuya who answered, settling rather heavily beside Yu. Kazuya had been hitting the drinks hard and fast since they arrived, if only because his demonic constitution meant he needed to drink enough alcohol to poison a normal man to start getting a buzz, and had returned from his drunken wading at the other end of the hot tub with some kind of pitcher in his hand - cute little umbrella, bright purple liquid sloshing about with crunched ice floating on top, sweet smelling- yeah, he had no idea what this drink was either]

And with the best group too! Dun wanna brag, buuuut, my voice is an angel's, an' everyone else's not that bad, I guess. [Kazuya clumsily set the pitcher down, and turned to Yu - he was clearly very very very naked] Oh, wait a min' - it's Yu-Yu! Hey Yu-Yu! [Yes, he was talking loudly even though "Yu-Yu" was right next to him] Enjoyin' yourself? Hey, didja know you're wearin' pants in the hot tub? You forget or somthin'? Ah, don't worry, everyone does it - here, I'll help ya take 'em off.

[theshiningone]

[... Well then. He loved to go to parties, but he was not expected the sight he saw as he entered the room.

Hiro did get intel that there was a party going on, but there were a million things that were going on that were very wrong. The main thing that he noticed that parties were happy occasions... However, being the empathetic fellow that he was... He couldn't help and sense that there was a very artificial happiness atmosphere in the air. There was actually a lot of sorrowful things going on in this room and the people throwing the party where one of them.

"Is this a party or a funeral?" is what he thinks at the back of mind. "I've seen hell twice in a row and this is a compacted version of it." is what he thinks again at the back of mind. "What's the story behind what really happened here?" is what he thinks once more as he was a very curious person when it came down to it.

While he doesn't mind drinking, Hiro had to wonder if he should stay sober enough to be mediator of sorts if anything goes wrong or to camera all of the hilarious events for blackmail fuel. The room was getting steamy, so he's stripped down to this with his sleeves rolled up as he finishes his first glass and watching everything in a corner of the room.]

I'm not sure if I should laugh at them or pity them. [Or do both.] There's a disturbing lack of girls around here, too.

[good_ideas]

[There's at least one girl at this party??

Shiho had come for the party and to laugh at drunken shenanigans, but stayed because she didn't have the heart to leave once she'd actually settled down and figured out what this was all about.

Despite how much she insisted that she didn't care (not even a little bit), she makes sure that there's plenty of water available along with the alcoholic drinks. She's also still sober in a corner with her lime and tonic water in case anyone did something dumb and needed psychometry-related assistance.]

Probably both.

[adminproof]

[Lo and behold, Hiro's alien keeper has finally arrived, if for some strange reason, anyone here has ever wanted to interact with him. He's merely standing nearby, a silver tray of drinks hovering a few inches above his hand. Don't worry; the drinks are also hovering an inch above the hovering tray. That way, he's sure nothing will spill.]

Is there anything else you would like?

[...Saiduq doesn't even work here, and it's made obvious by the fact that his own outfit is so markedly different from the uniform they have here. i'm so sorry kevin What is he doing??? Keeping an eye on Hiro, really. Making sure no Bad Life Decisions are made by his liege tonight, while of course, making sure commerce still flows and they're all properly paying for what they order. Or break.]

[popsometags]

[ Alright. He's decided, now is probably the best time to ask. This guy's holding a tray in a really suspicious manner, so he'd probably be the best person to ask...! ]

If... if we ask for more towels, will we be charged extra?

[ Swing and a miss. ]