The smell of cider was inviting. While it didn't completely mask the scent of tobacco in the air, the earthy fragrance brought with it a sense of comfort and nostalgia. It was enticing, almost beckoning those in the hall to stay a little longer and have a drink. Which wasn't too difficult, seeing as how alcohol was complimentary. [break][break] The decor was lavish, if not a little gaudy. The whole floor was carpeted with little spots of pine wood peaking out from underneath, which looked quite pleasant contrasted with the awful carpet design. The carpet was in bad taste, no doubt about that. A cool shade of blue, not so different from the deep seas that surrounded Kiri, was decorated ornately with what seemed to be a mandala pattern that emanated from the center of the room. It was almost painful to look at. The walls did not look interesting--a few interesting art pieces here and there, but nothing really worth expounding on. It was almost spartan, in purpose--even if it didn't seem like it at first. The carpeting made you want to look up; the walls made you look inwards. And THAT was all by design. [break][break] The chairs and stools looked incredibly comfortable and tasteful. The rounded fronts, the Ecru White that embraced the Danube colored foam--the seats exuded luxury. The tables were just as exquisite, handcrafted by skilled workers. The leather armrests were a beautiful shade of Gallery, a slight darker shade of white with hints of red in it. It contrasted nicely with the Midnight colored cloth that was spread across the table. [break][break] The contrast was astounding, but somehow, it didn't feel forced. It felt controlled, designed by smarter people to break you. Olfactory, visual, tactile, gustatory--all of your senses were engaged. It was imperative that anyone who entered the establishment focused solely on the games you could play on the different tables. It was place that was designed to take your money. [break][break] Tsukiya Hyūga stood behind one of those very tables. He was dressed far more orderly than he was accustomed to. He wore a stone-colored haori over a black kimono. It went well with his appearance. His white hair and lavender eyes lent themselves to a look of nondescript sophistication, which was completely the opposite of what Tsukiya was all about. He took a look at his work station for a brief second, before grabbing a couple of packed decks with a flourish. He unwrapped them and proceeded to separate the cards randomly into six different piles. The speed in which he did it left nobody in doubt that the man was a shinobi. [break][break] "Pontoon for today huh?" [break][break] With a sigh, he shuffled the six different piles onto each other and set them neatly on a card machine. He shook his head, irritated at his predicament. He would have rather played than work, but you couldn't exactly do that with Hyūga eyes and expect not to get your bones snapped. So with a practiced smile, he waited patiently for his next players.
Gambling had never been her forte, at least not when her face was too expressive and she could only keep track of half the rules of every game. Seriously, did there need to be so many rules? It was much harder than her studies, too many variables that she couldn't control and she didn't like that. But she did like the company of the kisaeng house and those that worked there which is why she often found herself spending any free time in the large room that was built to entice and attractive customers of all types. It was easy to distract herself in there, a drink in hand, get lost in the haze of the smoke, a pretty face to look at. It was easy to forget.[break][break] Usually she stays away from the tables, but a familiar face has her snaking her way between them, abandoning the poor boy she'd been flirting with moments earlier. Probably a relief to him as she'd been rather ruthless with her not so subtle words and tendency to be a bit handsy after a few drinks. Though now her focus was definitely not making the little Hyuuga's job difficult -- not at all.[break][break] "Tsuki-chaaaan~" She sing-songs as she gets closer, though Yukio's sure she was spotted awhile ago. "If I play, are you going to let me win this time?" [break][break]It was rare that he'd let her win when he was actually working, but it seemed like no one else had sat down to play a hand yet, so she could at least keep him company until then. She's pretty sure this is one he's tried to teach her, or was it Nichiren... or maybe Junji.. ah, it was one of them. She couldn't remember which of the brats had tried explaining which card game, but it seemed like all of them had tried to teach her one of them at some time or another.
[attr="class","mercy-blurb"] Yunyao had never been one to care for décor if you asked him anything about it and he wasn't about to. he did know that what was around this casino was seriously gaudy as heck but hey, this was not his circus. he did admit though; the atmosphere around here was always pretty fun and kept him entertained, not that he was one to go out of his way to gamble or even participate - his luck is crap, alright - he had found out a bit on the hard way but he would never admit or even contribute to it. still, having a drink or two while watching people lose money or even just despair was quite entertaining.
[break][break]
The jounin had been at the casino for a good amount of time and while he was dressed more or less casually, it still made him stand out in his own way. monochrome colors were his thing after all and hoodies, well, they were great for keeping a low profile which he had been doing up until now. taking the last sip of the drink he had in hand, his honey-colored eyes caught sight of something he didn't think he'd see, or perhaps he just didn't think the younger male would even try to look different but it was a nice sight to see and he did enjoy seeing new sides to people.
[break][break]
He swiftly made his way through the crowd, making sure not to bump into anyone as he did - not that it was difficult for him to accomplish really - before arriving at the table that Tsuki was at. it seemed like he was ready to go in hard as he waited for the players. he quietly stood behind the Genin and leaned slightly towards his ear and whispered; "Is this why your taijutsu is lacking?" of course, Yunyao was teasing the Genin but was it bad that he enjoyed seeing other people's reaction and what they'd do next? his eyes then settled on Yukio and smiled slightly. "Shouldn't you be asking that to whatever luck god or goddess is out there instead of Tsuki?" he asked as he grinned a little before looked back at Tsuki. "Should I rub some of my bad luck on you?" he asked with a fakeconflicted look to him before grabbing the Genin on either side of his shoulders and rubbing his arms.
[attr="class","bolo-body] The young genin smile wavered at his jounin-senpai's whispered voice. His body shivered slightly at the sensation. It wasn't an unpleasant feeling, but it was definitely unwelcome. Not that he would voice that out. This kind of thing already happened way too often for Tsukiya's liking. The last thing he wanted was an increase in frequency. [break][break] "My taijutsu would be a lot better if somebody decided to take his responsibities more seriously..." he whispered under his breath. [break][break] It was just like his jounin-senpai to mess with him during work. He tried to ignore Yunyao's advances, although that in itself was a task and a half. Yunyao had a penchant for bullying the younger Hyūga, which Tsukiya would argue internally that perhaps it was the jounin's way of showing affection... maybe. The jounin would usually stop when he wasn't given much attention, well sometimes. Sometimes he just didn't. Judging from the mood of his teammates, Tsukiya was quite ready for today to be a loooong work day. [break][break] "Shimizu-senpai," he began, turning to the pinkette, "I don't think I can do that, but perhaps Yunyao-taichou would be motivated to play instead of harass me when he sees that you've been winning ryō." [break][break] The young Hyūga always thought highly of the chunin. She was from a good clan, which appealed to his own Hyūga prejudice. It also helped that she was pretty... uh--pretty good with kenjutsu. He was ashamed to say that in his younger years, he might have had a slight crush on Yukio Shimizu. [break][break] "Want me to deal you in senpai? Or maybe we could get you a drink?" [break][break] A beat. [break][break] "I guess I should offer you the same thing as well Yunyao-taichou."
feigns hurt at the younger jounin's words, wasn't it proper to always let a lady win? why would she need to ask a luck god for help, hmph. brats with no manners were annoying sometimes -- especially when she hears tsukiya agree that he can't let her win. she'd whine to tengfei about it but she didn't want to actually them to get in trouble.[break][break] though fake hurt is quickly replaced by actual hurt at the insistence of calling her senpai. she can't remember how many times she's told the hyuuga it's just yukio-chan (or yukio-kun if he really wanted to be respectful), senpai made her feel too old. [break][break] "yun-kun, play with me! maybe your bad luck will make it easier for me to win." smile replaces frown at the idea of the jounin joining them and perhaps at the idea that she might actually win without cheating the system. if yunyao's bad luck was to be believed, she'd definitely walk out a bit richer than she initially came in.[break][break] "both! i'll take a refill and a hand." chuckles a bit at her words, realizing the innuendo after she's already said spoken. hey, blame the other drinks she's had. it was far too easy to knock back a few of the fruity flavored drinks without realizing how many she'd already had. big doe eyes pout at her jounin, trying to get him to agree to playing. it was definitely more fun as more people played, plus it was a valid excuse for yunyao to avoid his responsibilities... could claim this was team bonding or something.
[attr="class","mercy-blurb"] Yukio was adorable when she pouted, not that he was doing it intentionally this time around but it was a cute face he could enjoy for the time being. "Oh no, Yukio got the wrong idea." acting as if he was hurt, he kept on rubbing Tsuki's shoulders. "I'm trying to help you here by channeling all my bad luck to Tsuki." see, he was being helpful besides, his brain cells would riot if he even attempted any of these games.
[break][break] "Ha, Tsuki only wants me for my money." he shook his head.
[break][break] "So young and already being opportunistic." seriously. s.m.h.
[break][break] "I'd do anything you suggest Yukio but not this, besides, I'm already helping you by keeping myself away from you and showing my love to Tsuki."
[break][break] He flashed a smile at Yukio and wrapped his arm around Tsuki and rubbed his cheeks against the Genin's own. "See. Helping."
[attr="class","bolo-body] Tsukiya's face burned red. He didn't miss the play on words. One could also misconstrue his expression based on the jounin's behavior. [break][break] "Taichouuu. . ." [break][break] The whining tone in the genin's voice made no secrets of his age. The young Hyūga was left exasperated by his jounin commander's actions. What could he do? At least Yunyao wasn't smacking him around today. That was a plus. [break][break] "Excuse me," the teen said clearing his throat. He turned to one of the roaming waiters, "can you get the lady another drink please?" [break][break] The waiter nodded, scurrying off to retrieve another fruity beverage. [break][break] "It's just like blackjack senpai, without the 10s." explained the dealer, eyeing Yunyao on the side, "You get paid out immediately if you reach 21 as well." [break][break] A bet of 1000 ryō was already on the table as he explained. The young Hyūga then drew from the deck. A card for Yukio, and one for himself. The K♥ was on the table for Yukio, and a 7♠ for the dealer. He drew two more, an 8♦ for the chūnin, and a face down card for himself. [break][break] "Eighteen, Shimizu-senpai! Looking pretty good. I'm assuming you're going to stay?"
"if you play then it's double bad luck, so that means more chances for me to win!" she jokes though she doubts she can sway the young jounin's mind. for all the times he was lazy, he was just as equally stubborn when he wanted to be - case in point when he said he'd do anything she'd asked of him except for this. what a party pooper, sheesh.[break][break] though it was definitely cute to see tsuki-chan getting all flustered from yunyao's signs of affection. it wasn't like the youngest wasn't used to the rather touchy platoon two group that they all had. even platonically, the majority of their platoon wound up touching each other in some way or another, so it's no surprise that yunyao is clinging all over to the hyuuga.[break][break] oh? was she winning? was she actually winning? eighteen had to be good right, it was so close to twenty one that it was definitely too risky to try and take another card, but could she risk whatever card was face down for the dealer. was it possible for tsukiya to win with a 7 compared to her K and 8? ahh... this is where things got too complicated for her. all that chance and risk and she never knew what option to pick.[break][break] "i'll stay!"
