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Majima Goro The first question you're all probably asking yourselves -- "How many guys did I, personally, have to beat up in order to make it to the northwest corner of Kamurocho?"

The answer, as it turns out, is quite possibly zero! Majima prepared for this eventuality. Employees of Majima Construction stand proudly on either side of the street all the way from the southwest glitzy lights of Tenkaichi Street --the closest warpgate-- all the way down to a basement-entry store proudly labelled Pocket Circuit Fighter. The occasional bruised punk and low-level yakuza in a cheap suit upside down in a trash can is a testament to Majima's efforts to make sure everyone arrives safely enough.

The room itself is one of those linoleum, drywall, weird ceiling tile things that denotes most Modern Day Stores. Most of the traditional signage is stored away, though. The walls are a deep gold. There's a sizable track at one end, clearly designed for up to four cars at a time. It's made up of modular parts--designed to allow all kinds of different tracks to be built and taken apart quickly. Sick jumps. Loops. Things that really shouldn't be enthralling, but absolutely manage to be dramatic, heartpounding events nonetheless.
    here's also a small stage. It has a television and microphone setup, with a fancy device meant to take whatever media storage your world has, and transmit sound to allow you to play music. It has a staggering amount of things pre-recorded. Sometimes the drama of the moment fills the room. We don't question that either.

Majima himself is manning the bar. It is concerningly well stocked, but there is room for more, because there is always room for more.
Tetra     It's a very good thing Majima's kept the path guarded, because Tetra is rather worse for the wear. She's limping as she makes her way to the Pocket Circuit Fighter building. Her hair is down and loose, bangs partially hiding the welts that stand out in an angry red on her tanned forehead and cheek. It looks like it might hurt to breathe. She's dressed for the cold. It's a cute outfit--a burgundy skirt with patterned gray leggings, a gray sweater with an owl on it, a pink coat, and a multicolored scarf. A fairly plain leather bag is slung over her shoulder.

    Despite the rough shape she's in, the tanned warrior has a bright smile on as she moves down the stairs. She announces a cheerful, "Good evening!" in that almost-Received Pronunciation accent of hers, lifting a slender hand in a wave. Her eyes find Majima quickly, and she nods in his direction, moving over toward him. "Mr. Majima, I presume? It's good to finally meet you in person." She offers him her hand.
Katt Katt didn't know what to expect going to Kamurocho. She has been to Japan (any Japan; pick your favorite) zero times in her life and so it's all new to her. But she did know she wanted to let loose a little, and she *also* knew she wanted to meet other members of the Concord on something other than business.

So it is probably no surprise when she bursts through the door to Pocket Circuit Fighter after vaulting down the stairs in a fit of high energy. She is armed - she brought her staff - but she didn't end up using it the whole way down; apparently 'Majima Construction' did good work at keeping the streets clean.

"Wow, this is - " Katt pauses and actually takes in the place. "... not quite what I was expecting." She'd been thinking of it, subconsciously, as more of a tavern. Wood, stools, drunk guys. Well, maybe not the drunk guys yet. "But it's neat," she eventually decides. Even if she has no idea what some of it is.

She looks around some more, including at Tetra, who gets a long look as she spots the injuries, then Goro. "Hey!" she says, by way of greeting.
Arkae Zellar Arkae is actually a little disappointed that she doesn't have to fight her way in. She could use the experience.

That is, the life experience. Not any sort of 'fight 15 orcs and then get better at casting spells' sort of discrete numerical experience, what, that would be silly, life doesn't work that way.

Her quota of predictable tabletop meta jokes complete, the bird person heads in, looking around. "Oooh. That's a big toy car track."

"Oooh, a karaoke stage."

"Oooh, a handsome rogue with an eyepatch and a checkered past that's written all over his face, sitting at a bar, waiting for the party to approach him. Feels just like home. Hi Majima!"

Okay, maybe one more tabletop joke, but this one's not meta, at least.

She slides into a seat at the bar. "What's good, and what's bad, and how much for a shot of each?"
Haguro Haguro appreciates Majima Construction, at the very least. She didn't bring gifts for everyone, but she does at least give each and every single one of them a polite bow of her head in greeting and thanks. She's in a bit of a hurry to make sure she gets to the meeting point, though, and there might even be a bit of vaulting over those trash can yakuza once she realizes how little time she has to get there!

Thankfully, she gets to the store right on time, panting a bit after just barely beating the clock. Once inside, though, she contends with something a little stranger: All that pocket Circuit Fighter gear around. There's something strangely familiar about those little tracks and tiny cars, though, but she pushes that feeling down to find the man that set this whole gathering up.

Of course, that means beelining for the bar. "Good evening, Mister Majima. Thank you for the invitation!" Smiling politely, the shipgirl is dressed in casual wear for once: A purple jacket over a lighter lavendar sweater and gray knee-length skirt. "I think a lot of us have needed this for a while, so.. Um. Thank you again."

A brief chuckle later, and she turns to Tetra and Katt as they arrive. "Oh! Good evening to you both as well. You're..." There's a brief pause as she glances around. "... Both old enough to drink, right?"
Majima Goro Majima offers a bow to Tetra. Then, a moment later, realizes she wants to shake hands, and goes for it. The leather glove grip is a little awkward--he doesn't do a lot of handshaking, but he'll make his best.
"Shit, ya /sure/ ya came up the safe path? Glad ta see ya made it, eh?" There's a moment, and he mixes up a small glass of whiskey for Tetra, poured on a bit of ice, with a slice of lemon. "Here. Just somethin' ta get ya started, eh? I'll have the caterin' comin' down in 'bout half an hour."

He sizes up Katt for a moment. He goes for a miniature cherry sangria, whipping it up surprisingly quickly. "Heh. Ya know, I ain't sure what I was expectin' with ya, Katt, but actual cat wasn't it. Good thing I had the boys out. Can't imagine the shit ya'd be goin' through otherwise."

Arkae gets a single brow raise from Majima. There's a mug of beer. It seems like the sort of thing you give someone like Arkae. "Eeeh? I ain't fuckin' makin' ya pay! This is a fuckin' party I'm hostin' here!"

Finally, Haguro. "...I ain't sure, honestly, what ya drink. Is it..oil, or...somethin'?" He asks, scratching his head. "...Look. Underage drinkin' laws make a few assumptions here. It ain't a fuckin' bigass deal here. I'll get everyone rides back to Grand Dorado or some shit.
Arcadia On one hand, the lack of a fight is a little disappointing.
On the other hand, it does mean Arcadia can actually sightsee the trip from warpgate to party destination. Including snickering at the men upside down in waste disposal bins and waving to the Majima men doing their job keeping the streets a little less fucking terrible for the night. As such she doesn't fly, but as usual her 'ground' movement is hovering just above the surface, so it's still a reasonably speedy clip.

Once at the doorway though she does set down to the ground, so she can reconfigure her wings down to their collapsed mode, which includes sheathing that makes them look more like natural organic wings than large magitek constructs, and pad inside. Majima is spotted at the bar and waved too as she wanders over. "Greetings!" The sphinx reaches into her subdimensional pocket-inventory and pulls out a tall bottle of slightly luminicient liquid, which she sets on the bartop and smiles. "Unfortunately we did not yet collect more studballs to produce a full batch of the new liquor from the Bastion. So I brought something else that's popular across The Line -- Turbourbon!"

Get use to the dumb speed puns. They're not going away any time soon.
Katt "I'm not a cat!" Katt has that ready to go as an immediate response to Goro. "I'm a woren. Just so you know, the place I'm from has a lot of different clans - kinds of people, and if you call them the animal some of them look like it can be a fighting insult. So I give everybody around here a freebie."

She grins, showing teeth. Some of them are pointed. "Just don't keep doing it. I mean, do you call Arkae a bird? Katt's fine, though. That's my name! Why, do they go after woren around here?" Despite her objection, she really does look feline.

The question Haguro asks doesn't mean a lot to Katt. "Yes?" she half-answers, half-asks. "I mean, I drink other places, I don't see why I wouldn't here." It's not like Katt has ID that says how old she is. You'll have to take her word for it!

Katt looks over when the door opens again. Arcadia, who she's also met, but - she tries not to laugh at something she says. It's unclear what. "Turbourbon, huh? Does it go fast?"
Seifer Almasy      Seifer Almasy is not really a party kinda guy.

     He's got that real severe look to him. Square jaw, scar on his face, cropped military haircut. He's big, too, both tall and broad-shouldered. He definitely looks for all the world like he's that kind of man, that kind of military man who got out of basic and immediately wanted to go right back in. Hyperion is on his shoulder despite this being a completely relaxed trip - the gunblade in his hand, tapping against him idly. It's just a habit. He doesn't relax without it. His white coat flows around him as he walks. It's the same kind of coat Zefer wears in The Sorceress's Knight, though with a little Seifer Almasy flair - the red Templar crosses are definitely not from the movie. Nor is the chain with the fox-head emblem, a simple three triangles dangling at his neck.

     He's met Majima before, so he just clasps the man's hand with a grin like you'd see out of a sports movie, a loud, strong whole-handed clasp that doesn't go to a shake. It'd be followed-up by a hug if Seifer was the kinda guy who hugs people. He's not.

     Then he turns to the rest of the Concord. "Aight. So a lotta you haven't met me yet in person. I'm Seifer Almasy. Fox Knight, Hand of the Concord, King of the Moon. Kind Of A Big Deal."

     "Just gettin' this outta the way now, because, again, sometimes people forget this - I won't remember your names tomorrow, an' I don't mean 'cause I'll be sloshed out of my mind. So don't get upset, don't get frustrated, and don't take it personally. It ain't because you're all nobodies to me or because I don't care."

     "You're in the Concord. You're all somebodies, an' you're all important to me."

     Seifer sits down at a booth. He relaxes exactly like you'd expect him to relax - the Classic Douchebag Pose with his arms spread out on the booth like a mobster. If he had two women under his arms the image would be complete, but everybody on God's Green Earth knows Seifer's not only not that type of person, but would be angry if you even suggested it.
Lezard Valeth Lezard strides down the streets of Kamurocho, an intimidating figure... Or maybe a Harry Potter Cosplayer about 20 years early. People probably wouldn't actually be all that intimidated by him here really, if it were not for the intense, overwhelming self-confidence he carries himself with despite completely looking like a nerd.

    Still, he arrives at the Pocket Circuit Fighter building, stepping in to look over the environment. "Well well. This appears to be quite the party planned." He says, with a small smile. "Let it never be said that Majima is not a gracious host." He moves to the bar and sits down there, nodding to the bartender in charge. "I trust you are doing well, Majima?" He doesn't bother introducing himself. He apparently expects his appearance and reputation to precede him.
Majima Goro "'sat so?" Telling Majima that something is a 'fighting insult' may have the wrong effect. "...Anyway, sure. Woren. ...Anyway, if ya look like ya got a spark o' fight in ya, ya gonna be dealin' with crap 'round here.

Arcadia's offering is taken and placed with the rest. "Shit, that stuff ain't ready yet? ...That's disappointin'. Alright. Well, I'm down for whatever the fuck Turbourbon is. Ya want the first shot?"

Seifer's hand-clasp is met in kind. Still weird, but he can deal with it. "Heheh. Ya remember me well enough for my likin', Seifer. But yeah, he's right. It's worth rememberin' that no matter the crazy shit goin' on out there, and there's a *lot* of it, we're all on the same team, eh?" Booths? Yeah, there's close enough. We'll go with it. Seifer's given a tall beer as well. Seems like his kind of drink.

The intense, overwhelming self-confidence of Lezard Valeth would *absolutely* get his ass jumped. It's how things go. Majima's already pouring out some wine of obscure vintage by the time Lezard's sat down. "Neheheh. Lezard, eh? Didn't think ya were gonna show up to this shindig. Didn't seem serious enough for ya. Good ta know you can let ya hair down once in a while."

"Ain't that some shit, though?" He waves his hand around. "You tell me two fuckin' years ago a group like this would have *anything* in common I'd tell ya you were on somethin' serious. It's why I love this fuckin' Concord gig."

Then comes the bustle at the door. Nishida, loyal, brave Nishida, has come down with the first cooler. Then the second. The Food Has Arrived. It is mostly sushi, but there is fried chicken. And burger fixing. There is a buffet slowly arranging and amassing on a table.
Tetra     Tetra pauses and looks at Haguro, raising an eyebrow. "Of course I am! I'm on a first-name basis with the owner of the Charging Steer back home."

    She's like 17. It's fine. It's Fine!

    She gives Majima a small, lopsided grin as she accepts the drink. "I did, thankfully. This was last night. I had a run-in with an apparently infamous but paradoxically nondescript assassin." Her eyes glance aside. "It. Did not go well for me. This isn't the worst of it," she gestures at the welts, taking a small sip. "Mm... yes. I think I needed that. The lemon goes a long way... Thank you, Majima." She lifts the glass toward him, then sets it down.

    Rooting around in her bag a moment, the mercenary produces a bottle of white wine and offers it to Majima, smiling, head slightly bowed. The label is illustrated with a great, serpentine dragon with a serene, benevolent expression. The label below it reads:

                               KOKALA VINEYARDS                              
                                 Vintage 908                                  


    She perks up a bit as she hears Seifer announce his presence. She roots around in her bag once again and pulls out a large, old-looking leatherbound book. Embossed upon the cover, in gold leaf, is the title:

                        DAME ALTHEA, KNIGHT OF FARORE                        

    Below it is a gold-leaf illustration of a knight clad in full plate, sword in one hand and shield in the other. Her shield bears a simple crest--a circle, with two crescents rippling outward. She approaches Seifer, book in hand, and offers it to him with a slightly giddy grin. "Here. This is the book I mentioned."
Arcadia "It makes you feel like -you- can go faster," Arcadia replies. "Trust me, I know what it feels like to go that fast for real, I can tell when something makes you feel like it without the actual moving," she adds with a smile that, unsurprisingly, bears small fang-like teeth at the corners of her mouth. Even though, other than the ears and nose, her face is mostly human-like.

"I know, but it's not so easy as to just go and pick some. Some nasty turbofauna make their homes near studball groves... and even bigger nastier ones prey on them." The smile quickly comes back though. "I'll make sure you get some to try when we do, though!" Followed by a nod. "Sure thing. But just a shot, so there's enough to go around."

She raises a paw to wave to Seifer, and even to Lezard when he shows up.
Haguro Tetra and Katt are easy enough to understand. Arkae and Arcadia take a bit more time for Haguro's brain to process facial structure, and she straightens up a bit once she realizes she's been staring at them for a while. "Oh! Uh. Good evening to you both as well." After greeting the pair and shaking off the initial surprise, she turns back to Majima with a laugh.

"No, no... Well, not as is. I can still eat and drink normally while I'm like this, at least." She notes the lack of that gut-tail as well as her hair being much less white and glowy than the last few months. "Hm... Is there anything I can help out with, while I'm here?"

Even here, she's still got those office lady roots in her.

"Although if everyone's responsible, then... It should be okay." With the ID situation taken care of (more or less), Haguro indeed takes Katt and Tetra at their words! That gives her some time to take notice of Seifer and Lezard arriving. "Ah... Seifer! Mister Lezard. It's good to have you both here." The former gets a significantly brighter smile and wave compared to the latter's more subdued bow of the head, but she tries to play it down by turning right back to Majima after noticing herself doing that.

"... Could I get something light to start with? I think.. Maybe I'll try that karaoke machine once everyone's drunk enough."
Majima Goro "...Huh. Musta been Janny-chan," Majima replies to Tetra. The wine is put to the side, for now. There is going to be plenty of time for that as we go along. "Yeah, she ain't kiddin' round. I've seen the shit that woman does. All I know is, don't try ta play to her good side, don't try ta negotiate. Just take her out as best ya can."

"...So 'turbofauna' are why ya had ta bring in 'turbourbon'," Majima replies. He's a little disbelieving looking at first, before he nods a couple times. "Arright. Arright, that's fine, sure, why the fuck not." He pours a shot of Arcadia's drink out, passing it over.

"..Arright. Fair 'nough. Lemme think. Somethin' light, somethin..." He clicks his tongue once or twice. He finally settles on a proper cocktail. A shot of rum, a can of cola, poured into a glass. Simple, fast, basic. "Cuba Libre then, eh?" There's some ice in it. It's a traditional, delicious cocktail. "And if ya worried about it, grab some sushi with it. Eatin' food's how ya keep sober longer."
Arkae Zellar Arkae takes the beer and *CHUGS*, downing it quickly. She's a student of the art of quaffing, honed in many a tavern across the realms.

"Ah! Good! That hit the spot," she says as she sets the empty beer glass down. It seems to have met her standards, or lack thereof. "Good stuff, Majima. Now, karaoke first, or entertainment first..."

The tengu is getting off of her bar stool when Tetra pulls a bottle out. Arkae pauses, looking at it.

"Oh, were we..."

She reaches into the bag at her hip, reaching into it further than should be physically possible given how big it looks to be from the outside. "... Supposed to bring something? Um..."

"..." She feels around in vain, knowing she does not have any bottles of wine or anything else appropriate in her inventory. "Um... hang on, oh-"

She pulls out a fist-sized conical glass flask of something that's emitting a steady silvery aura of light. "Here," she says, acting as though this was actually her first idea to pull out. "Here's my contribution!"

The unlabeled flask of glowing silver liquid is left on the bar, and the tengu heads off towards the karaoke stage without further comment or explanation.
Katt It may not have been the wrong effect at all. Katt likes to set up fights, after all. "Oh, I don't mind that then," she says to Majima. "C'mon, bring the punks on! Except maybe not right now since I'm relaxing. I'll probably want to fight someone later, though. If another assassin shows up today I'll handle it," she offers to Tetra.

Katt does the try-not-to-laugh when Arcadia speaks again. "Well I'll try that too," she says, brightly. "I'll try anything once." Including a cherry sangria, which appears to be what she's getting. Katt actually recognizes this one, apparently, when she picks it up.

"I didn't bring anything since I didn't have anything to bring," she admits. "Sorry." This isn't going to stop her from drinking what other people brought, of course.

Already knowing (and recognizing) Seifer's problems with names, she doesn't try to force him to remember hers this time, just giving him a slight nod. Lezard gets a longer look, too, before she nods to herself, apparently having figured something out.
Arcadia Arcadia tilts her head a little to the side, sidebangs swishing softly with the motion. The efforts to not laugh or look at her like she's crazy because of the names don't go unnoticed, but these names are so natural to her that she doesn't really register entirely why people act so odd to them, so well.

"Turbofauna is more a collective xenobiological term for creatures that adapted and mutated to survive the constant state of acceleration The Line was under before the Final Race that dismissed the force that was causing it," she explains, then takes the shot glass and gulps it down in one go. "Always hits the spot~" Having a technorganic biology that doesn't get drunk easily makes shots of that stuff easy, too.
Seifer Almasy      Seifer gives Haguro a grin and a wink as he takes his tall beer. He's not really a big drinker but, hey, he's got more tolerance than most people thanks to SeeD Super Soldier Spectres, so he sips at it. It's not bad. If he was a more regular drinker it'd probably definitely be his thing. He'll probably change his tune by the end of the night; Seifer's probably the kinda guy who turns his song and dance around real quick once he's had a couple in him.

     Tetra hands him the book. He looks at it for a really long moment, taking in the contours, the gold leaf, the whole thing. When Seifer looks back up at her, the twenty-year-old (and he is - he's not so much older than she is, which is probably a little bit of a shock; once you see him up close it's way more obvious that he's not thirty or grizzled or something like that) is smiling. "I'll take care of it an' get it back to you in the week." The book disappears into his coat, added to his inventory where everything else he keeps is.

     Arcadia gets a nod of acknowledgment as Seifer drinks. Arkae just sorta gets a stare, mostly because a beak chugging alcohol is a weird thing to see. It's not a rude stare. It's just a 'huh, didn't know THAT could be done.' He also waves at Katt. He's at least more...cheerful...than you might expect if you'd never met him and only heard him as Stern Officer Guy on the radio. He's got that kind of JRPG Hero Exuberance, the sort where he's obviously pretty hot-blooded by nature and sort of irrepressible and irascible.

     "Oh, uh, was I s'posed to bring something? Dang, I..."

     He'd say *he forgot* but that's almost redundant at this point.

     There's another long pause before Seifer slams his drink down and stands up. "AIGHT."

     "That's enough a' that."

     He spins out a CD case from his coat. He walks over to the karaoke machine. Fearlessly, as is his wont, he figures out how to open it, slides it in, and then turns and grabs the mic.

     And he starts singing.

     "Whenever I sang my songs...."

     It turns out Seifer actually has a *phenomenal* voice. He's been practicing since he took Celes's power a long time ago.

     There's a brief image of the grey giant wobbling back and forth behind him, but it's probably just a trick of the light. As is the drink in one of its hands.
Majima Goro "Fuckin' what?" Majima has both hands on the bar for a moment, looking at Arcadia with a discerning eye. "...Sure. Arright. Why not." He replaces the shot glass with a highball glass of scotch and soda. "Since ya drink -that- fast, guess I'd better keep up, eh? Nehehah!" And then he's slid across the bar to..
Arkae. Who has given him a potion of some sort. "Eh, it's not -required-, but shit, if ya got somethin' ta share, uh, why not?" This potion is glowing with light. He has -absolutely- no idea if this is poison. Well. No, if it's alcohol, it *is* poison, but is it...he's just..gonna leave that until someone specifically requests the Mysterious Silvery Potion at which point it's not his fault anymore.

Fuck, is Seifer actually doing karaoke? Majima was joking about that shit, he didn't expect...

Uh. Wow. Okay. He's actually pretty good. He's going to just...clean the bar for a moment. And watch this.
Haguro "That seems straightforward enough. And sushi..."

That's actually a pretty tempting combo. Instead of doing the smart thing and eating before drinking, though, Haguro does the reverse and downs half of her cocktail with a refreshed sigh and shiver. "Heh... Right. Everything in moderation."

Someone has to be responsible, right? Right. That's just what Haguro has to keep telling herself as she realizes she forgot to bring something as well, the shame already turning her cheeks a bit red. That, or it's the alcohol, but she can't be that much of a lightweight!

Thus, she joins Seifer at the karaoke machine to help get things started. She doesn't join in on the singing just yet, though, instead taking a seat to clap along and just stare after a while.

"When did...? How? Is that something you picked up from your training or...?" It takes Haguro a moment longer to start going through the pre-recorded listings, needing a bit of time to sort out her thoughts and look for something vaguely familiar.
Seifer Almasy      "I practiced," Seifer says sheepishly to Haguro, a cheerful grin on his face as he hands over the mic, "Like, a lot. An' I like that song. Don't ask me to sing anything else. I'll only be 'pretty good.'"

     "But this?" Seifer jerks his thumb at the CD. "This was sung by my ex's mom. An' rumor is the song was written about the guy who starred as Zefer. So I...y'know, the song's pretty important. Gotta make sure I get it right."
Arcadia Arcadia can only shrug a little. "Maybe check it out some time? There is plenty of reconstruction work to go around if your company is interested." The weird reactions to the explaination she has gotten use to.

She takes the drink with a nod of gratitude, and turns to listen to Seifer do his number. She nods, quite the interesting song. Music always has it's own story to tell if one is willing to listen for it.
Katt 'Studball' is still going to make Katt laugh for a while. She's allowed. She's not that mature and it hasn't gotten old yet.

"Ooh, fish," she says, which is probably not exactly proving the whole 'cat' thing wrong. She heads over to look at that - it's not a thing she's familiar with in precisely, so she has to investigate it. She gives Seifer a grin right back, before he gets into music.

...which is actually pretty good, she has to admit. It's not a song she knows (spoilers: she will probably recognize exactly zero of the songs played tonight) but damn. Is she supposed to applaud? She doesn't, instead popping a bit of sushi in her mouth. Katt does not use chopsticks. Claws are fine.

"What's that?" she asks of the potion, pointing her little finger at it. With her mouth a little full. She's not good at etiquette.
Tetra     Tetra's smiling, watching his face the whole time--and grinning wider as he smiles back and says he'll have it back in a week. The book is well-loved; there are traces of further gold leaf along the page edges, worn away by Tetra's fingers.

    "Excellent. I hope you like it," she tells him energetically. That's a bit of an understatement, really. She hopes he *loves* it. She takes a seat and sips on her whiskey, looking... stunned as she listens to Seifer singing. "Goddesses, that's beautiful," she murmurs, and as he finishes the song, she claps for him. Even does a little hooting and hollering, because *damn*.

    A plate of sushi in hand, she goes over to look at the voluminous song listings... hmm. It takes her a few moments, but she eventually finds what she's looking for. Satisfied, she memorizes the song number. "I'll go after the next person!" she volunteers, handling her chopsticks expertly as she lifts a salmon nigiri to her lips.
Arkae Zellar "It's good!" calls Arkae, to Seifer.

Having contributed to that conversation, the tengu goes to raid the food table and load a plate up high with, basically, one or two or three of everything.

The flask full of glowing silver liquid sits there without explanation or label. Dare you take a sip?
Majima Goro There is a firm clapping noise from the bar. "Nehehaha! *Shit*, that was incredible! I fuckin' /knew/ draggin ya out was the right idea!" Majima's eye glints. "...Heh. Maybe I'll have ta go up there. Anyway, maybe take a look at the car pieces, eh?" He gestures. Nearby the track are...carefully aligned parts. Bodies, wheels, tires, engines...this is everything you need to assemble a slot car. Even decals, if you're so inclined. "There's a bunch of weight and speed shit ta think 'bout, but slappin' something together just ta see how it works ain't a bad plan, Seifer."

Arcadia gets a shrug. "...We got a lotta shit, but maybe if I run outta options, ya know? Heheh. Ya would think I'm the only construction company in the fuckin' Multiverse, sometimes."

"Heh.." Majima looks over at the flask. No. *He* needs to remain not...subject to whatever weird shit is going on. He's the host.
Seifer Almasy      Seifer is uncharacteristically sheepish at all the praise for his singing. It's one thing to be praised for his gunbladesmanship, his skill at being a Knight or a SeeD. This is kind of...new. It's one of those things he's practiced, secretly, quietly, for a long time, but never really put on display. The last time he did this, he had someone else's voice to borrow. Now it's just him.

     It's a little embarrassing.

     But then Majima mentions the other minigame and Seifer just kinda blitzes over there to start looking through the cars.
Katt Katt spends a few moments looking at the car parts, where Seifer took himself off to. Hmm... maybe in a moment. "Do you get a lot of people playing that?" she asks instead. "I'll have to try it! I don't know much about that kind of machine, but it can't be that hard, right? It's all just little bits and pieces."

Katt pops another bit of sushi in her mouth. Majima doesn't answer her question about what the potion is, and it is just sitting there. And the sangria - well, Katt has had sangria before, and it's *good*, but it's not precisely new.

She ambles over toward the silver potion, pops it open, and sniffs it. Provided it does not smell immediately like it's going to kill her, she treats it like a shot. Arkae gave it to the bar as a drink offering, so it can't be *that* bad for her, right?
Majima Goro This system is literally so simple a small child could assemble one of these cars. The problem becomes--Seifer can see the track. If you put 'godspeed motor' and 'godspeed gears' on the same car, there's no world where it's taking that one hairpin turn. He can sense it. He's done this sort of thing. But if he goes hard on the turning strength, someone willing to take more risks and just shove engine and /just enough/ turn is going to overrun him. There's a truly absurd amount of customizability here, and the 'optimal' car changes based on however the track's designed.
Arkae Zellar The potion smells vaguely alchemical. It's not a great palette, but maybe the taste will be better?

"Oh!" Arkae hurries over, still holding her plate of food. "Is it time to start playing this? I want in!"
Arcadia Arcadia laughs a bit at that response. "Of course you're not. But the potential is there for those interested in taking it. I was sent to join you all as much to inform others of The Line and it's oppritunities as I am to learn more of the rest of the Multiverse."

She leans over a little to look where Seifer and Arkae run off to... A minature racing game? Huh. She might check that out eventually, out of curiousity, but for now she's going to drink her drink, wait for her turn at the music thing, and learn more about actually being social in a social gathering.
Lezard Valeth     It might have been an amusing time to demonstrate the capabilities of his nerdy-looking body, but he'll have to do that some other time. For now, he accepts the wine, smelling it for a moment and swirling it like a coneisseur before he takes a sip. "Ah.... Fantastic. You are an expert at reading someone's preferences, I see."

    There is a pause, and a nod. "You are correct. I am not normally one for festivities. But I admit to a measure of..." A pause. "... Camraderie, one supposes."

    Even so, Lezard seems to be content to mostly drink and observe the events going on for the moment, though he does glance at the buffet. What might be more notable, however, is that flask, as Lezard squints in that direction. "... Interesting."
Majima Goro "...Ya know, I remember hearin' bout some bigass race on The Line," Majima says, cleaning a glass. Sure, there aren't enough used glasses yet to justify this, but a substantial part of being a bartender is to Always Be Cleaning. A glass. It's a whole thing.
"But other than that, I don't know shit 'bout it. What's the deal, anyway?"
Majima shrugs. "It ain't like the games take that long. Don't worry 'bout it. Eat, drink, and get in when ya feel like it," He points out to Arkae. "If ya need hints, I used ta be real big inta this shit, ya know?"
Tetra     All right. Fine. "In that case, it's my turn."

    Tetra slams back the last of her whiskey, stuffing the last of her nigiri in her mouth. There's a grain or two of rice clinging to her lips, which she realizes and takes care of only once she's gotten up onto the stage.

    "All right. I suppose I'll go now. Let me see," she murmurs, taking the microphone in hand and looking at it like she's never seen one before. (She probably hasn't.) She holds it in front of her mouth. "Is thi--OH!" she squeaks a little, inducing a touch of feedback. Quietly, "I suppose it's that simple..." With a wince, she leans over to fiddle with the machine and select her song.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mipc-JxrhRk

    She taps her toe to keep rhythm as the song begins, waiting for the lyrics to begin. Guitars chug, and it begins.

    She sings forcefully, passionately, like she's got a band backing her. Her voice is a soprano, sweet and melodic; she hits some notes wrong, here and there, thanks to her injuries more than the booze.

    "Lost in the sky... clouds roll by, and I roll with them. Arrows fly! Seas increase, and then fall again."

    She places her hand on her chest. "This world is spinning around me. This world is spinning without me, and every day sends future to past. Every breath leads me one less to my last!" She taps her palm to her chest with the rhythm of those last three words.

    As the keyboard wails behind her, she looks down, hair shadowing her eyes. She holds the microphone in both hands. Waiting.
Haguro "It's a good song, to be fair... St-still. I wasn't really expecting that from you." Haguro giggles softly, pauses, then doubles back with a slightly more flustered look on her face. "Not that I thought you'd be bad at it or anything! Just.. Uh. I-i mean..."

Emergency maneuver: DRINK. That'll keep her face busy and stop her from saying more dumb things, maybe. Haguro probably should have drank anything except that cocktail, though, but at least she's out of danger from having to elaborate for now!

She probably shouldn't be heading back to the bar to get more drinks, though. She does slow down a bit as Tetra sings, listening to her voice as well with a gentle hum in the Cruiser's head and just a slight sway in her movements. "I think I saw a good one before..."
Seifer Almasy      Seifer is deep in the Minigame already. He's looking at the track. He's futzing with the parts. He's locking engines into bodies. He's messing with tires. He's exploring all the little ways the car is supposed to work with the eye of the same kind of person who can rattle off dozens of Triple Triad strategies, the same kind of eye Majima has for this sort of thing. Seifer is a Minigamer. He *embraces* this stuff. And he is *good* at it.

     But he's not a complete ass. He does turn around to listen to Tetra sing. It gets an eyebrow raised while she's not paying attention
Katt Katt didn't appear to have died from drinking the potion like a shot of liquor, though her eyes certainly widen and she makes a faintly confused sound. It looks like she's trying to hold back a cough.

But hey, she's fine! And that's the important part.

"gah," she says, once she's recovered. Okay, mostly fine. Maybe she shouldn't have had it right after the sangria. At least the potion wasn't alcoholic, she thinks; why would you waste good alcohol on that?

Taking another piece of sushi to go (apparently she likes fish) Katt decides to mingle. Tetra is singing - and she's good; Katt pays attention, though it's another song she doesn't know and it's longer than the last - but that just gives Katt cover to walk through. She waves at Lezard as she passes since she hadn't technically greeted him, but she wants to look at the cars, stepping politely around Seifer and Haguro to do it but ending up mere steps away.

Katt doesn't know a damn thing about cars, big or small. She just looks for the moment, her eyes flicking back and forth as she tries to *figure it out*. It's an unfamiliar mode for her. You can see her thinking hard. "Do you look at these a lot?" she asks the two of them.
Arcadia "Even without the constant environmental acceleration most things there are still speed focused. Racing, flying" she flicks out her wings a bit just for reference before folding them back down, "A lot of societies use vehicles, but not all of them. Look at me, for example."

She pauses for a moment, both to enjoy her drink and the song Tetra has started singing. These people have interesting yet diverse tastes.

"To keep it brief," she resumes talking to Majima while listening to the song, "These cultures have lived for speed for so long, it would be impossible to do otherwise. So instead Argo Alexandria is trying to help them find the stability to thrive with it. Build the economies to support them. Those suped up cars and off-road transports aren't cheap to maintain, after all."

Arcadia pauses to look down into her now nearly empty glass. "There's also a lot of things out there to find. Things left from times before The Line, or from societies that.. didn't survive the merger on their own. Things that need to be found, understood, and put to use for a better whole. Not regulated and locked away just because they might be different from what you consider normal or 'safe'." she almost spits that word, resulting in a sort of cat-like hiss. "But at the same time, does need to be kept safe from those that would misuse it. But misuse comes from lack of understanding more than anything else, so if that can be prevented..."

She trails off to gulp down the end of the drink, but that's more or less sums up why she and the city she lives for decided to ally with the side they did.
Arkae Zellar Arkae looks over. "Yeah, um, which parts make it go fastest?" she asks Majima, holding up a pair of engines from the set that's available.
Tetra     She looks up suddenly, hand shooting up and forward. The lights on the stage turn a bright sky blue, and Tetra's voice bursts forth. "WATCH THE SPARROW FALLING, GIVES NEW MEANING TO IT ALL! If not today, nor yet tomorrow, then some other day!" She grips the microphone two-handed again, stepping forward. "I'll take seven lives for one, and then my only father's son! As sure as I did ever love him, I am not afraid!"

    She continues to sing... and the chorus begins. the blue deepens, light shimmering with water caustics, then fades to red. "PULL ME UNDER! PULL ME UNDER! Pull me under, I'm not afraid! All that I feel is honor and spite. All I can do is to set it right!"

    The lights go a dull tan, and... wait. Were there fog machines? Because there are fog machines now, a roiling mist enveloping Tetra's feet. "Dust fills my eyes. Clouds roll by, and I roll with them. The centuries cry! Orders fly, and I fall again!"

    The chorus repeats, the lights taking the same blue to red fade as before. "Pull me under! Pull me under! Pull me under, I'm not afraid! Living my life too much in the sun... only until your will is done!"

    The outro plays... and Tetra looks skyward, toward the lights. They grow orange and red, flickering with heat. "O, that this too... too solid flesh... would melt--" The song ends abruptly, and the lights return to normal.

    The fog dissipates, and Tetra looks like she's in a bit of pain. But she's grinning ear-to-ear as she comes off the stage, and she cocks her head lightly to Seifer. "One has a lot of time to practice, travelling alone. And I've been known to play my harp at taverns, here and there."

https://youtu.be/cHqi2hoAXYQ?t=450
Majima Goro Majima Goro is a responsible bartender.

Specifically, he's responsible for getting another drink in Haguro's hand--this time it's vodka and orange juice. He offers a thumbs up and moves on.

Lezard's wine is topped off. Tetra's drink is back in action. He's just casually sliding around replacing everyone's alcohol without even bothering to be asked. He used to run the best clubs in Japan. This is absolutely his wheelhouse. his element.

That doesn't mean he didn't catch Arcadia's explanation, though. Or forget to fill that glass. "Alright. I get that, eh? Races are a way of life, good as any other."

Arkae gets his attention, though. "...Eh, there's a guide there, but the 'godspeed' engines are fastest.'"

There we go. There's a /booklet/ describing the weights and speeds. We could go into specifics, but since we're abstracting the whole thing anyway, a general idea of 'acceleration/speed/handling' would probably do. It's..very difficult to have all of them.
Arkae Zellar Arkae considers, and carefully picks out parts that balance speed with grip and cornering and-

Nah, just kidding. She picks out only the very fastest parts and crams them all onto the car, giving zero consideration to any other factors.

"This is a good idea," Arkae says to herself.
Haguro Haguro raises an eyebrow curiously as the gathering around the racetrack grows slowly, semi-pushing herself up on the counter to try and get an extra inch of height to see better. Never mind that she could see better just moving a little bit to the side, but that vodka and orange juice...

She's liking that one. "Thanks again, Mister Majima. Have you dabbled in either of these things much?" She waits a moment before gesturing at the Pocket Racer track and the karaoke machine, then downs some of that second cocktail before heading towards the karaoke machine.

She's feeling brave enough now. She scrolls through the list of available songs, listening to each one for a few seconds before holding it on one demo that sounds like the start of a cheesy love song. "This was the one from... Huh."

It is decided. Haguro starts the song, and it takes a bit before she starts to find her flow and build up enough confidence to just start belting it out.

"... Lying is a bad habit of mine... And yet, and yet, why did I say goodbye? ... What an idiot."

(OOC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyIn4Ay0lqY )

The Cruiser's voice is fairly steady, if a bit unrefined in the actual singing department. It sounds like she's even trying to deepen her tone a bit, but it's a little tricky to do that consistently after downing two cocktails. Once she's done, she just staggers right back to a couch and kicks back with her drink while staring off into space quietly.
Seifer Almasy      "Makes sense," Seifer says to Tetra, his eyes tone neutral, but cheerful. It's actually really hard to get a read on what he's *thinking*, in no small part because of how irascible and JRPG hero he is - he wears his *emotions* on his sleeve, but not his *thoughts*. It's dissembling, except, no it's not, it's like some kind of reverse dissembling. Seifer knocks off another drink and Majima's got it right there, immediately, and he grins at the other guy. That's *impressive*. That's *skilled*. That's a talent you can't just pick up.

     "Never touched it before," he says to Katt happily, "But I get this kinda thing real quick. So what you do is..."

     The Gunblade Knight rapidly explains the basics to Katt like he's been playing his whole life. Seifer downs another of his drinks and then, again, turns away from the minigame to watch Haguro. He's got plenty of time to learn the minigame. This is something a little more important.

     Seifer actually whistles for her.

     He's got a history with Haguro. If things had gone a little different, things might be *really* different. A silly phrase but a fact - a push in one little direction could've sent things spiralling.

     So he whistles for her, and cheers, and claps. The energy's different than it was with Tetra; he gave Tetra attention and applause, but Haguro gets a confidence-booster.

     And, well, he just really is that good at motivating people. He knows how to do it, when you get right down to it - how to read somebody.

     It's the bully thing, again.
Tetra     Tetra smoothly picks up her refilled drink, lifting it to Majima in thanks. She goes over to the track, looking over the manual curiously. She touches a thoughtful finger to her cheek. "Hmm. I think I understand," she murmurs. "Let me see. If I wanted to prioritize acceleration first, and handling second, I would choose..." She looks over the selection, thoughtful.

    After a bit, she finally makes her selection. She snaps together a reasonably competent little slot car, focused more on turning ability and getting up to speed than speed itself. "Hm. Yes, I think that will do nicely. I can already see why people enjoy this as a hobby... constructing your own unique vehicle is rather fun in itself." She takes a drink from her whiskey.

    Tetra looks up at the stage, smiling at Haguro's performance. It's a bit on the rough side, but that's all right. She's putting herself out there. She joins in with Seifer in cheering for her. "I think I get the appeal of karaoke. Both as a performer and a viewer... it's fun to be up there on the stage, and endearing to see your comrades put themselves out there."

    "I suppose performance is a rather soul-exposing thing, isn't it?" she observes, as she puts her car on the track. "So. Would anyone like to race the Tanagar Mustang?" she asks, with an excited grin.
Arkae Zellar Arkae holds up a ridiculous looking car that's been painted garish yellow.

"The Lightspeed Dash, taking on all challengers!"
Katt Getting Katt to sit down and listen to a whole explanation is a goddamned miracle...

...which is probably why Seifer doesn't manage it. He comes close, but by the end of the explanation Katt is already poking at some of the parts herself and only half-listening. Her tail lashes as she considers her options. "I get it," she tells him, but she probably doesn't.

By the time Haguro finishes, Katt is already snapping a car together. She has no experience and it shows; it takes her a couple tries to get everything lined up. As for what she picked... she went on instinct. But *something* seems to have sunk in from Seifer's explanation, because she's actually managed to assemble a fast but at least somewhat maneuverable car; it's weighted enough to handle some of the corners. Probably. Maybe.

"What's a tanagar?" she asks Tetra. "But I definitely will! With, um... the Tiger-Stripe Corsair! The pirate, not the place." She did not actually find a tiger-striped chassis to build around. "And I couldn't sing like that, no way. I'm not even going to try. I do a lot of things well but singing ain't one!"
Majima Goro Majima nods amicably at Seifer. Filling drinks at just the right time is absolutely just one of the many talents you pick up in his line of work.

Haguro gets a cheer as well. "Hah! That shit's a /classic/! Ya got good taste, Haguro!" There's a sigh. That song's got *memories*, you know?
"Yeah. ..Heh. Karaoke's been a thing for me for decades, and Pocket Circuit Fighter..eh. I won't lie. I got into it ta piss off Kiryu-chan. But.." There's some handwobbling. "It's pretty fun anyway, ya know?"

Arkae can quite easily make an /incredibly/ fast car, as it turns out. One of the parts is actually labelled in the guide as 'probably too fast'. It must be /extra/ double good. Right? Right.

At any rate, people seem ready to race. So he steps over to grab a second microphone. This one is not for karaoke. It is /explicitly/ for the purpose of announcing Pocket Circuit Fighter.

Cars are taken, placed on the slots, and each person is given their remote. "There is a one-time boost when you press the button. Time it carefully. This is a simple track, just to get everyone used to things." He explains.
Arcadia Once she's certain no one else is up for a turn Arcadia sets her drink down on the bar and zips over to the karoke station. This she actually did some research on, and pulls out what is basically the magitek version of a USB drive and plugs it into the machine. She only put one song on it so it's not hard to find and get started.

And start it does, with strong guitar and drums. It's clearly on the harder side of rock, with the sort of thumping beat and rhythm one could easily see a bunch of motorheads and thrill junkies jamming to. Arcadia may only have moderately average voice, but her natural tendency to put on a show kicks in and she twirls the mic in her hand a few times before holding it properly when it's time to start actually singing.

" Give me the wheel, so we can move a little faster! I'll make it real; I'm not a glorious disaster.
What part of livin' says you gotta die? I plan on burnin' through another nine lives!
One more for measure, that's ten for a soul; that never sleeps so are you ready to go?! "

( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGhJKiMR4XY )

" Bloodshot against the clear blue sky! Tick Tock I think the well is runnin' dry! My my, I can't lie; I need a shot again, that sweet adrenaline!
Dead scared cuz I'm fearless in the head! Bang bang! Cuz the needle's in the red! My my, I can't lie; I need a shot again, that sweet adrenaline!
My, My, My Sweet Adrenaline! "

The resulting visual effect is... something else. Rather than defined images it's the impression of intense speed through flickering lights of various colors, rapidally flashing by numbers and oscillating line vibrations, mingled with the occasional sounds of spells firing, engines roaring and rockets screaming while dopplering in and out. It's bright, bold, and doesn't slow down one bit until Arcadia is done with the song.

One can only imagine this is an aspect of what Arcadia feels while blazing her way through bullet hell battles with no intent of slowing down or holding back.
Haguro Haguro can feel her cheeks burning up at the cheering and whistling from Seifer. Even after she's already finished her song, she's still busy staring into space to distract herself a little longer, the significance of that song and his cheering in particular not lost on her in the slightest.

It's a little easier to not get too flustered from Tetra's and Majima's cheering in comparison. She smiles softly towards the pair, taking another sip of her drink and wiping off with a napkin right off. "I heard it a few times before and it just... Stuck. This racing, though..."

That, she'll have to get up to actually watch. She's a little more wobbly, but still standing as she goes back to the bar to take a seat there for a better view of the circuit. Arcadia's song has the Cruiser bobbing her head lightly, and she's already cheering in two directions by the time the first verse ends and the cars start finishing their first lap.
Tetra     The race starts as Arcadia starts her song; she hits the accelerator, leaning side to side on the turns. She sticks her tongue out as she concentrates, trying to finesse through the corners. She takes one too fast, and the car very nearly flips off the track trying to catch up with Katt. She makes a noise of effort, as if willing the car not to flip--and it doesn't.

    It comes back wheels down, and as she hits the straightaway, she hits the boost, catching up to--then barely overtaking--Katt's Tiger-Stripe Corsair, sustaining the lead just long enough to claim first place. "Woo!" She raises her arms in triumph, bouncing--and then cringing, cradling her stomach. "Ow. Ow ow ow..."
Arkae Zellar "Lightspeed Dash, GOOOOOO!"

The Lightspeed Dash takes off from the starting line, and Arkae *instantly* jams the boost button.

'Takes off' turns out to be literal. When the cars reach the first turn, the Lightspeed Dash simply continues on straight, jumping off of the side of the track as though it were a ramp -

- flying across the room, pinging off of the wall at an angle -

- and shooting straight behind the bar, causing a small explosion of glass and top-shelf booze.

"Oops."
Majima Goro Majima Goro does his absolute best to try to narrate the race, but...Arkae's car goes off the rails. Incredibly off the rails. It..manages to fly across the room and take out one of the bottles of booze. Luckily, it was just one of the expensive ones, not, like, Tetra's. That would have been -actually- heartbreaking.

..There's a pause. And then he just starts cackling like a madman. "Ny...nyeehAHAHAHAHHAAAAA!" His knees bend, he leans back. "Who knew ya fucks actually knew how ta fuckin' party!"

Regardless, he goes to go clean that up, for now. There *will* be children here tomorrow, and he doesn't want any of them hurt. He's not a monster.
Katt Katt doesn't much know how to drive it, either. She seems to follow the 'push the button and it will all work out' strategy.

Except, around the corners...

The Tiger-Stripe Corsair threatens to tip over the first time it jets around a corner. And the second, and by this point Katt thinks she has the lead. She practically bounds up from her position, leaning well over the track (though not the part of the track where the cars actually *are* by now), her face an expression of concentration!

When her car nearly leaps off at the next turn, Katt's tail frizzes up, and she reluctantly eases up just a *hair* on the accelerator to avoid following the Lightspeed Dash into oblivion. The car wheels on the edge for several long seconds before dropping back into its slot, and she's recovered...

...but Tetra's Mustang pulled in front. "Ah, crap! I need another race!" Katt is excited enough when she recovers her car - apparently she wants to adjust something on it real fast. She has a lot of energy to go around - she's practically bouncing, as unlike Tetra she doesn't have injuries stopping her.
Arcadia Arcadia stops at the end of her song, blinking a few times as a tiny car has shattered bottles at the bar.

Blinks again.

Looks down at the mic, sets it gentle down, reclaims her magi-USB drive. And zips back to the bar to retrieve the rest of her drink as well. Despite that she's actually grinning. "I couldn't of timed that better if I had tried!" Chugs down the rest of her drink. Don't need throat getting dry after all that singing after all.
Seifer Almasy      When she's done, Haguro gets the smile she knew she was gonna get from Seifer. Arcadia's music isn't really to his liking (Seifer has NEVER been a hard rock kinda guy, despite the punk exterior), but he claps for her and listens, then gives his attention, finally, at last, back to the minigame.

     It takes him a few minutes to assemble his car, not because he doesn't understand, but because he's taking every bit of it piece by piece.

     And then he sets it down on the track when everybody else is done, not to race, but to give it a test and see what he needs to edit.

     He's not challenging anybody yet. He's actually...playing...the minigame. Not as a party game. As...as a serious thing.

     *Damn* seeing Seifer like this is weird. He's...*focused*. And *intense*.

     The grey shadow that occasionally shows up behind him might be the cause of his eyebrow twitching every so often, though.
Tetra     Tetra squeals as the Lightspeed Dash smashes a bottle of booze. After the race is over, she looks over to make sure it wasn't hers. "Oh, thank the Goddesses," she murmurs. Katt's energy is infectious, of course, and Tetra grins at her. "So you think you can beat me, hm?"

    The injuries are the furthest thing from her mind. This is exactly what she needed--a night of song, games, and good-natured mishaps. The sort of thing you can lose yourself in. She's not thinking about evil gods, nor the crisis at home--just whether she can finagle that corner next time, whether she can hit the boost earlier, whether she should have another go at the karaoke stage...

    The Hylian watches Seifer. It's remarkable. She'd said it before, almost as a joke, but... he doesn't do anything halfway. It's kind of a marvel to watch.
Seifer Almasy      When the car flips over and rolls onto the next track, Seifer doesn't actually look frustrated. he just picks it up and starts taking it apart again. He doesn't even notice anybody else looking at him or talking to him; he's just redoing the car again, making little adjustments, making little tweaks. Changing out the tires and giving it another spin. Fail. Changing out the engine and giving it another spin. Fail. It's methodical, it's scientific. It's like those guys who write game FAQs on GameFAQs - obsessive to the point of being kind of weird.

     This is probably why he's so confident in his Triple Triad skills. He's *done this exact thing* to that game.
Majima Goro Majima Goro finishes cleaning the glass. It's almost like he's used to that sort of thing. Seifer...seems to have begun methodically testing his car. Well. Everyone seems to have sufficient alcohol for now.

"...Arright. Should I give the ol' mic a spin while ya all lick ya wounds from that last race?" He offers, stretching out a little.
Haguro So many cars, but only one can be victorious! Haguro's not sure which one is victorious or who even made which one, but she cheers them on regardless! Yes, even the Arkae's when it starts bouncing around the room with the very real possibility of getting lodged in someone's eye.

Drunk Haguro is not concerned with little things like physical safety. Even the explosion of glass and booze doesn't stop her cheering.

"Hehe... Good work, everyone! That was really close... Think you'll be making any changes, Miss Katt? Miss Arkae?" She's not too worried about Tetra needing to change hers, at least. Haguro finishes her second cocktail, then gets up to snag some food for herself while she has enough sense to do that and not just ask for #3 right away. She fills up a plate, then pops a squat near Seifer, alternating between eating pieces of sushi herself and offering some of that alleged brain food to him.

Majima, of course, gets a big thumbs-up from the Cruiser. "Yes! I'm curious to hear how your voice translates to singing with the... Uh. You."
Katt "Uh, obviously." Katt grins right back at Tetra as she works on popping off the wheels to her car - apparently she wants to adjust it to handle corners a little better.

Seifer plans things. He tests, gives it a go, changes things, tries again. Katt does it all by feel. She passes the car hand to hand (not quite tossing but close) to feel the weight, then starts making a whole bunch of little changes at once. It's almost not the same car even though it has similar handling characteristics, probably. "Yeah, I gotta change some of these things. Who knew little machines were fun? I never messed with them before."

"Do it!" she calls to Majima. "No fear!" Honestly, she has no idea if he can sing or not, but honestly she doesn't care - it's fine either way.
Seifer Almasy      Every time Haguro offers, Seifer eats with a, "thanks". He's a sushi guy. You don't live near Balamb and not like fish. That's insane. Fish are everywhere near Balamb. Fisherman's Horizon is somewhere. Seifer himself fishes. You just, you *like fish*. And Seifer likes fish*ing*, too. He likes going out on the ocean and casting his line and everything. He doesn't own a boat but he probably could if he wanted to - but that's more work than he'd like to put into his relaxing hobby.

     So he eats. He doesn't look at her, but he doesn't need to - he's got Hyperion in hand or at least touching his skin the whole time. Somehow that just...makes him better. It's not a confidence thing. It's something tangible.

     Finally, he snaps another set of pieces into place and gives it another spin while people are getting ready.
Tetra     "Do it!" Tetra yells out to Goro, crossing her legs and waiting while the others tweak and assemble and test and tweak more. She smiles at Haguro. "Hello. I'm Tetra, I don't believe we've met."
Majima Goro Majima Goro steps towards the karaoke stage. He goes through the menu.
24 Hour Cinderella shows up on the list, and then he pauses. He shakes his head. He continues scrolling, before something else pops up onto the screen instead.
IT'S ALRIGHT IF YOU'RE HAPPY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTrbRMr3Bzk

The music is slow. Majima still sounds...screechy. Slightly. But less so than usual.

If I had the whole world
to design as I liked
Even if I made a heavenly harem that never turned me down
    If it turned out
to make you unhappy
    I'd stop
Even if I had to sleep
    in a tiny room
        in a mouldy old cottage

One can envision something. A japanese apartment. Small, even by those standards. Empty. a single mattress. A single radio. Nothing else.

Wrapped up in a threadbare futon
With a pillow
    as hard
        as a tombstone, even then
if it made you happy, well, it's okay

Why is his eyelid shiny? Under the spotlight he's almost on?

However much terrible cruelty I suffered
Even if it meant
    going to hell
I'd take it a thousand, ten thousand times over you being unhappy!
As long as you're happy, it's okay, I don't mind
Pain, hatred, bring it on!
As long as you're happy
    As long as you're happy
        As long as you're happy
It's okay
So hey, dry those tears
As long as you're happy, it's okay, I don't mind
Don't spoil your precious beauty
As long as you're happy
    As long as you're happy, I DO NOT MIND!

He flings his hand out, as if to protect someone from something.
However many times, to whatever deity, I will pray
I LOVE YOU
    I LOVE YOU
Never forget why I didn't say it
I LOVE YOU
    I LOVE YOU
It was so that tomorrow you could be happy
One day
    You will be

            Happy
Seifer Almasy      The car goes around the track flawlessly. Seifer nods and collects it. He can still tweak it a bit better, but for now...

     Seifer stops, again, messing with small cars to listen.

     Majima's...

     *Good* isn't the right word. It's sort of...it's like...he screeches, a little, but he's got...

     Well, it's...odd, actually. It's...

     When Majima stops, Seifer just watches him for a moment. He doesn't applaud. He's looking at Majima's eye. He's watching the man's face. He's observing the man's reactions. After a long moment, he claps, and then, to Majima, says,

     "You gonna tell us who she was? Or is this not the time?"

     His hand pats Majima's shoulder. "If you're not ready, then let us know when you are. 'swhat family's about."

     "Also,"

     "*Man* you got heart."

     And then he goes back to messing with small toys.
Arcadia Wow, that was both a good song, and a really deep one.

"Sometimes music tells the story our normal voices cannot," the sphinx muses thoughtfully, giving an appreciative nod to Majima. With how deep that was, loud applause feels like it would be out of place.
Majima Goro Majima puts his gloved hand on Seifer's shoulder. "...It ain't ever gonna be the time. She's safe. She's happy. And the best thing I can do ta keep it that way...is ta never speak her name again to anyone. Don't worry 'bout it."

With that, he goes back to the bar. People probably need their drinks refilled, and he wants a plate of food to work off all those feelings he just gave himself. And maybe a swig of that turbourbon.
Haguro Haguro is rather relaxed about just popping in chunks of food for herself and Seifer, barely even looking where she's aiming and somehow avoiding stabbing him in the eye with an errant piece of fish. @emit Perhaps it's from past practice, perhaps it's from natural skill, or perhaps it's confidence borne from being a bit sloshed.

It's probably from all three. Tetra gets a curious look at the greeting, and Haguro wobbles a bit as she stands back up. "Really? Ah.. My name is Haguro. I'm the Fourth of the Cruiser... Myoukou-class Cruisers. It's good to meet you in person finally!" She giggles softly at that brief mixup, then offers Tetra a piece of sushi as well. "Are you settling in okay? If you need a hand getting around or taking something down, I'm round.. Uh. Around.".

Another chuckle later, and then she starts cheering for Majima... For the first fiften seconds or so, at least. It doesn't take long before she starts tearing up, and then she's cheering and clapping and sobbing about halfway through without giving much of a crap about proper decorum by the end of the song.

Booze is a hell of a drug. Speaking of which, Haguro goes back for number 3.
Seifer Almasy      "Ain't gotta tell us anything about her name," Seifer says, "Make one up, for all I care. Protect her all you want."

     "But if you wanna talk about it, you know we're here."
Tetra     Tetra said earlier that performance was baring one's soul, and... this is that. Goro's putting his whole heart into this song. She can tell it's personal for him--or if it isn't, he's doing a damn good job of acting it.

    When he's done, there are tears in her eyes. She claps. It's not a cheering clap, it's heartfelt. A thanks for sharing, for opening this up.

    This is karaoke. Performing, opening yourself up, sharing yourself, your passions and your pains, with your friends. "That was... that was incredible. I don't think I can top that," she says with a sob-laugh. "The soul, the passion you put into that... thank you."

    Tetra takes a big drink of whiskey, and smiles in agreement with Seifer. To Haguro, she gives an odd look. Cruiser? This is... a girl, not a ship. But that's a question for later. "I'm settling in... decently well, a few stones in the road aside. Thank you, Haguro. I appreciate the offer, and I'll certainly keep it in mind."
Katt "Nice to meet you too," Katt says to Haguro. "I'm Katt! Hi."

Katt doesn't know the word Seifer is looking for either, because she is not always good with words. 'Raw' might be it, but to Katt, that's meat.

She's pretty light-hearted most of the time herself, and she rarely examines anyone's emotions in depth. Still, something about that song hit her. She actually pauses for a moment in her work, her left ear flicking a couple times as she's lost in thought.

"Hey, hey, you can say what you need to," Katt says to Majima, herself. "But you can also *not* say what you don't need to. So..." She honestly isn't entirely sure where she's going with that. She's bad at explaining, and she has too much machismo to admit weakness in herself, so she doesn't know how to express it to other people.

Her ear flicks again, but this time in irritation, and she almost aggressively snaps together her car. "Done," she says, firmly. Because otherwise she's going to keep messing with it forever.
Majima Goro Majima has a bite or so. Has a shot of the bourbon. "Listen." He walks over to the pile of parts. He snaps pieces together. "...I'll make ya all a deal then. Ya wanna hear about that shit?" He says. "...Fine. But only if I don't win this next race, eh?" He seems to know exactly what he's making for the course. Sure, maybe he's just full of it. Maybe he doesn't know exactly how to beat this race. Or maybe he's planning on throwing it.

And that's the weirdest part about working with Majima. You really, honestly, don't know in the slightest what the fuck it is he's planning.
Seifer Almasy      "I'll take that bet."

     Seifer sits down in front of the track. "Just you an' me, then."

     "Otherwise it ain't fair. Three vee you is way too tilted. You just sit down, put your car down on the track, and let's do this."

     Seifer spins the wheel of his. It's...simple. Straightforward. A balanced machine, excelling in nothing. It's a very Seifer car - functional, utilitarian-

     Hahahaha. You believed that.

     No.

     Seifer's car is an absolute nightmare mess. It's put together with jank. It's got those stupid cornering bars, it's got a weird-looking chassis, it's got a fast engine, it's got spiked tires for tread. The engine itself is faster than it should be, but the weight of the car slows it down to grab access to the acceleration and the handling.

     "Iapetus."

     (It's the Greek Titan of the West; Hyperion is the East.)

     "Let's see if it earns the name, huh?"
Haguro It takes a good minute or two before Haguro finally settles down from her cheering and sobbing to finally answer Katt. Her eyes are still puffy, but she manages a smile in turn. "Hello, Miss Katt. I remember hearing your voice a while ago, too... A longer while, even. You didn't get hurt or anything, did you?"

Someone has to worry about these sorts of things when a new-ish member disappears for so long.

Afterwards, she approaches Majima and offers him some of that sushi. Not the plate, but straight up trying to feed him a few pieces while Haguro continues tearing up with a stone-faced expression.

"Race with pride, you two. Do your best!"
Arcadia Arcadia doesn't know what he's planning, and honestly, that's part of the excitement. Something -unexpected- is a really big thrill, and she's watching with rapt attention even when she's not the one doing the actual racing because of it. This is just as entertaining.
Majima Goro The first race goes remarkably poorly. Both cars fly right off.

Majima looks to Seifer. Cars are retooled.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rpbOLm1vus

Majima looks intently serious, this time. He places his car on the track. Seifer gets a hand grasp, the same way Seifer gave to him earlier. There's a breath.

The cars go. Seifer is, in fact, picking this game up incredibly quickly. His car's going very, very slightly faster than Majima's. It appears, for the first few laps, that Majima intended very well to throw this race.

And then his eye narrows. He presses the button, and the car *boosts*. ...It doesn't seem to be enough.

".....nah. I can't--nah. Not this time. Not tonight. This is a night ta fuckin' party, not hear my -fucking bullshit-."

He holds his hand out again. The same protective pose he made earlier, thinking about..someone. Someone he'd die--no, someone he'd live through hell every day for. And always would.

He presses the button. His car..has a second boost.

It's just enough. by a centimeter. It is just enough to boost Majima past Seifer's superior car-part picking skills by a single centimeter, and less than a third of a second.

He doesn't look proud. He doesn't look smug. He has a smile on his face like he'd kept a promise he's kept for a very long time.
Seifer Almasy      It's so close.

     It's *so* close.

     The boost out of nowhere claims it by less than inches. Seifer sits back in the chair, hand on his hip, staring at Majima's car as he contemplates what went wrong. He doesn't respond to Majima for a few minutes, just reading the cars like he's played this game a thousand times before. Majima chose the right moment. Majima chose the perfect spot to boost in. And Majima was determined not to tell them.

     Seifer closes his eyes.

     "Hey, like I said. When you're ready. Tonight ain't the night. Maybe tomorrow night. Maybe a week from now. Maybe a year."

     "One way or another, you're gonna let us help you carry those burdens."

     "Good race."

     Seifer picks up the car and resumes examining it with his clinical eye.
Katt 'Course not," Katt waves off Haguro's concern. "I just went exploring for a while. There's nothing wrong with that! Before I'd hardly been anywhere, I grew up in just one city and I'd never been anywhere else for very long. And it wasn't anywhere near as big as this city either."

Tokyo is big, y'all.

But then the race happens. No: The Race. There's an actual wager on the line and that makes it far more interesting. Katt isn't sure who she's cheering for. If it was *her* she'd want to keep her secrets, but also Majima has made them very intriguingly mysterious to her as well as Seifer. She's not racing, but she's still into it.

Katt leans forward to get a better view. She's eager to see the results; she whoops whenever there's a tight turn that causes near-disaster (regardless of whose it is), she tenses when they're so close she can't tell who's in front.

And eventually there's a winner. Katt sinks back down slightly, going flat on her feet instead of trying to stand on tiptoe to see further (she's kind of short actually). She isn't sure if she had preferred Majima or Seifer to win, but there is exactly one thing she *is* sure of.

"That," she says, "was a *very good* race."
Majima Goro Majima Goro has a bottle of beer in his hand. It's nothing fancy. He takes a long drink from it, and looks back over to Seifer.

"...Ya know, maybe. ...I mean. ...If I toldja who she was, ya wouldn't even /remember/, ya fuckin' shit!" He cackles again, slapping the gunblade master on the shoulder. "Fuckin 'lie about her name', can't believe ya got me with that one." He looks back over to everyone else. "...Alright. Come on. Back ta havin' a good time, arright?"