Can't We Be Friends?

Blaise catches the look from Amy, and he blinks at her. Did he mis-step? Did she have more to say? Bah, whatever. He's positive Mariko wasn't going to change her mind - why would she? She's got her brother to worry about, and he knows he'd do anything he could to protect his family if they were in any kind of danger.

But Amy's been riding him since he got that stamp! Did his age put him at such a social disadvantage with her? Was she... ageist? Or did- 'Oh look! A bracelet!' He fixates on the silver with an avian interest while she wobbles her phone about. And when she finishes that, he gingerly reaches for her hand to tug it closer.

"You seem like a decent person," notes Blaise to Mariko while his attention seems to remain firmly placed on Amy's bracelet. "So if things go screwy for you, y'know... let us know. You may not wanna draw attention from this particular group, but I've heard about some others out there that're kind'a nasty. Don't feel alone, 'kay?" Even though she has a brother, knowing there are others out there who'll be supportive and helpful is important.

While he talks, he casually presses the back of his hand to Amy's, rolling it a little. Should he manage this bit of clandestine discretion, he'll have left a neon sheep on her hand. And naturally, he'll draw no attention to that yet. It's more fun if Amy happens to notice it on her own. Or more hilariously, if she tries to order another drink and the stamp gets noticed! The attention to her bracelet? The chit-chat with Mariko? Diversions! All diversions! Growing up with siblings has definitely left him with some finesse in subterfuge, but will it pay off here?

...But he did at least mean what he said to Mariko.

Amy returned the grin. "Thanks. Will do." Divine, huh? Amy wanted to laugh. Amy had, for her own amusement, been privately referring to the sexy Valkyrie by names from a rotation of stripper handles- Desiree, Luscious, Paradyse, and the like. It sounded like she hadn't been too far off the mark.

She glanced briefly down at Blaise's hand when it reached for her own. She politely held out her hand with the bracelet on it for easy, convenient access before returning her attention to the conversation at hand, nodding in agreement with Blaise's words of support. Mariko did seem like a decent person- strong sense of family, of loyalty, of selflessness. It'd only been a few minutes since they'd met, but there wasn't really anything objectionable about her character... aside from her taste in music, that is. She was somebody that Amy wouldn't mind getting to know better.

Then Amy felt Blaise roll the back of his hand against hers, attracting her attention again. She pulled her hand back, rolling her eyes. "Weirdo."

Amy drained the rest of her cocktail. It was time to go; the plan was a bust, and there was no longer any need to stick around. "Well, Mariko, it was a pleasure to meet you. Thanks so much for taking the time to hear us out." She held out her hand for a handshake. "We'll see you around. Maybe even in the ring before too long."

Mariko had to fight back the urge to giggle when she noticed Blaise putting the sheep stamp onto Amy’s hand. But despite that one little distraction, she still appreciates his words. There were a lot of ways he could’ve gone about reacting to her decision not to join them, and she was glad he went the way he did.

“Thank you. I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.” He was right. The Valkyries may be threat directly linked to Yamato at the moment, but there were plenty of people out there who had potential to be every bit as dangerous as they were. So it was nice to know that in the midst of all of that, there were at least a few people like Blaise and Amy in the mix too.

When Amy held out her hand, Mariko once again reached her own out and shook it. “Likewise. And of course. Even with things turning out this way, I appreciate the offer. And who knows? Maybe you will. If so, I’m sure I’ll be looking forward to it.” Once her hand left Amy’s, Mariko would then hold it out to Blaise to shake his hand too.

Blaise is delighted to find Amy's not realized what he's done. But from how it sounds, she's ready to leave! He can't let that happen without at least trying to nudge her towards some social embarrassment! He owes it to her! It's the Friend Code! ...And for that 'grownup' crack she'd made earlier.

"Get a shot before we head out," Blaise recommends. "Somethin' for the road. Keep your pep up. After all, we just got rejected." The last part is added with a playfully morose frown, his hands setting over his heart.

Then back to Mariko, "If it's in a match with one of us, it'll probably be me you're facin'." He winks an eye at her with a smile. "I'd say I'll take it easy on ya, but I get the feeling that'd just insult ya."

"Blaise, I'm not some sort of lush; it's not even one. And my pep's just fine, thankyouverymuch." But her head turned toward the bar all the same. She did need to get her card back, and it was never a bad idea to get in with the local barkeeps. "But I will say bye to the bartender. Excuse me." Amy pushed her chair away from the table and went back to the bar, leaving her two companions behind.

Mariko couldn’t help but giggle at Blaise’s over exaggerated sadness about her not joining with them, then watched as Amy headed over to the bar. She already knew where this was going, and the thought only caused her to laugh a bit again and shake her head. “You two are something else.”

When Blaise mentioned a potential match between them, Mariko flashed a grin his way. “If you tried to ‘take it easy on me,’ I’d make you tap out before I even had a chance to feel mad about it. Or, maybe I’d just think of some less than flattering holds and pins to put you in to get back at you.” she said with a wink. In either case, going easy on her wouldn’t be a wise move on his part...unless Blaise just wanted to be put through something like that.

Blaise winks an eye at Mariko. He knows she knows what he's up to. He just hopes it pays off.

He turns in his seat to face her fully again, arms folding over the tabletop. "Ooh, confident, huh?," he chides, unable to withhold a playful lilt on his challenging tone. "Don't you worry. I go into every match planning on giving my everything. Gotta push if you wanna come out on top, y'know." He gives a firm nod to his own statement, as if that punctuating gesture will make all the difference. "That and I don't know what 'less than flattering holds and pins' you might pull on me, and a guy likes to keep his dignity. Aheh..."

Amy, meanwhile, claimed a stool. "Close me out, Tommy,"

"Just the one drink?" Tomoya, aka Tommy, teased. He wiped his hands on his towel before he went to fetch Amy's card. "Thought you were gonna let me show off for you today."

"Sorry, gonna have to be another time. Our business finished quicker than expected." Amy glanced at her phone. Eh, what the hell. She wasn't doing anything else today. "I'll take a shot with you, though, if you want it."

Tommy paused and looked over his shoulder. "Done. What are we having?"

Amy raised an amenable hand. "Bartender's choice, as long as it's brown and local. But nothing that’ll kill my wallet."

Tommy knew just the drink. He swiped the card and delivered it to Amy, along with a pen and receipt. He pulled two clean shot glasses from beneath the bar and set them in front of Amy. Finally he turned to face the wall behind him. He barely had to look- the bottle he was seeking was on the far right edge of a middle shelf for easy grabbing. As he poured the drinks, he started to talk.

“The Yamazaki 12-year. Real good shit, and as local as it gets; the distillery is just outside of town. It’s not as sweet as bourbon and not as peaty as Scotch, but we beat both you and the Scots in the world whiskey rankings, so you're not really in a position to accuse us of doing it wrong.” His voice turned wistful as he returned the bottle. “It’s a bit of a waste to be drinking this as a shot, so try and take it slow, Amy-san.” He pushed one shot glass out toward Amy... “Cheer- whoawhoawhoa!” ...before pulling it right back. He motioned with his hand. “Show me your hands.”

Amy blinked, but did as she was told, offering her hands palms up to the bartender. Tommy took her gently by the wrists and turned them over. Her left was clean, but from her right smiled a fluffy, neon-pink sheep, a bit smudged, but unmistakable for anything but as such. Tommy sighed. “Amy-san, I could get in real trouble for this.”

Amy was dumbfounded for all of a second before Blaise’s frankly very suspicious behavior finally made sense. “Tommy, there’s nothing to worry about. Here, I’ll show you my ID-”

But Tommy’s hands were up, and his head was shaking. “I leave that stuff to Bruno. The rule inside is, if you've got the ink, you don’t get to drink.”

Amy frowned as she studied the mark. “Bring Bruno here, then. This just a prank from my asshole friend over there. See?” She held up her hand. “The sheep’s facing the wrong way.” Indeed, the sheep was a mirror image of what it should have been, facing left rather than right.

Tommy looked doubtful, but the club was fairly empty- Mariko was one of just a handful of regulars that they opened for at noon on a weekday- so he went to the front door. He returned just a moment later, alone. Bruno hadn’t even bothered to stand up; Amy was the only blonde in that day.

Tommy was apologetic. “Okay, let’s try again.” He slid the shot glass forward. “Cheers!”

"Kampai." Amy turned to face the table and drained her shot. When the glass came back down, Amy was drilling holes into Blaise with her eyes. Amy drew a menacing thumb across her throat, but the corners of her lips were twitching northward.  

Then she turned back around, blowing a long, burning stream of air through her lips. "Hooo~ That's some good stuff." Actually Amy couldn't really tell; most alcohol just tasted gross. "Thanks Tommy. Not a huge fan of jazz, but as long as you're here, I've got a reason to come back."

Tommy laughed. "Thank you, Amy-san. I'm looking forward to seeing you again. And sorry about the mix-up."

"Don't worry about it; wasn't even your fault." Amy winked and moved to return to the table.

When she got there, Amy slapped the back of Blaise's head just hard enough to escape the 'lightly' descriptor. "Good to go, champ?"

Once Blaise had finished his little speech, he spared a glance to the bar counter in time to spot the bartender balking. The teen's smile spreads into a full-on cheshire grin. It worked! And though Amy isn't giving the shocked and flustered reaction he was hoping for, the awkwardness of the moment is still sweet enough to give him diabetes.

When Amy returns, she'll find him chatting with Mariko as though nothing had happened. "Doesn't mean I wouldn't be curious, mind you, just-"

Headslap!

"Gah! Child abuse! CPS! CPS!"

Of course he's just playing it up, but he protectively covers his head in his arms.

When Blaise glanced over in Amy’s direction at the bar, Mariko fought back a small chuckle as she did the same. It seemed like just the kind of childish prank Yamato would try to pull. Maybe that was why she appreciated the humor of it as much as she did.

But she then brought her focus back to the conversation with Blaise. “Oh, I know exactly what you mean. I wouldn’t have it any other way.” she said, before giggling at his last comment. “True, but certain people might like to try to take it as well~”

It was right about then that Amy came back, and Mariko laughed a bit as she slapped Blaise right up the back of his head. And Blaise’s comical over reacting only made it that much more amusing to watch. Shaking her head as she laughed, she then glanced at Amy and nodded toward her.

“Sorry again I couldn’t be of any more help this time. But really, good luck to both of you. Whatever happens, I hope you give those three everything they’ve got coming to them.”