Reflection, Gossip, and Liquor

Some time had passed, and Soma found himself at the bar once more, sipping some wine before placing it down to rub his head.

Reisen, the woman he had a crush on...had brainwashed him to believe they were a couple. And while they had made up, he had decided that it would be better for them to remain friends. But still.

"Gah, I can't believe I fell for something like that!"

It had been about a week since she had returned home from her impromptu trip back to her home for a possible lead. Since then, at Airi's insistence to take something of a break from it all, she had delved into her work, hoping to get her mind off things and have time to just think things through. About her goals. Her purpose. And maybe her lovelife. She'd had a clear head to do so, for the first time in a while. Well, when she wasn't treating whatever crazy person in this place needed in.

It had a been a particularly busy week, but no one could tell you why. Still, it was enough to completely drain her and leave her with a bit of a headache. And when headaches call, there was only one place for it. Donning her familiar cloak, she felt it was time for a nice drink to forget the stress. And who would be sitting at the bar then a familiar white haired attractive young man that she's long since settled her feelings for. She tapped his shoulder to get his attention as she sat down next to him with a warm smile. He looked a little frustrated, though.

"I see you took my advice. Wine suits you. Didn't expect to see you here, though. Something on your mind?"

Raising his head, he gave a small smile at June, before looking back at his drink. "Ah...yeah. It's good. Thank you." Sipping it, he sat up, trying to keep a smile on for her.

"Well..You remember Reisen? Turns out that my feelings for her were...more a result of her putting me under a spell. I guess being in this 'Impure Land' as she called it caused her to give into lust, and...yeah."

Another sip of his drink. "So....Yeah. I'm single now, and her and I are going to remain friends for now. Whether something comes of it or not, I don't know. I'll be trying to help her get settled around here, though."

She did WHAT?!?

Stuffing down the initial reaction (and urge to hurt her), she listened on to his story. She hadn't heard the term 'Impure Land' in some time though. She swore it came up once or twice in a textbook she read but she couldn't recall at the moment.

"Not many people would want to still remain friends with someone that openly admitted to manipulating them, whether it was under their control or not. That's...wow."

She ordered a round for herself. Apparently Makalov wasn't on tonight. Pity.

"Corruption, huh? Most Midara I'm familiar with would be the ones *corrupting* more than anything affecting them. Is that going to be a problem for her living here?"

Wait did he just say he's single now

"Not sure. If it is, I can try and take care of it. As it is, I'm going to at least help her find a place to stay, maybe a job of some sort." Polishing off his wine, he placed the empty glass down. "Not sure how a rabbit from the moon trying to act as a Midara would be able to find employment here, but it's worth a shot."

Turning to the doctor, he smiled. "So...How goes your life? It's been a bit since I've seen you."

Rabbit, from the moon? I knew that sounded familiar. If the Lunarians are going to come down with her there's gonna be hell to deal with.

"Chances are, if she's not actually a Midara, she might be able to find a job rather easily. Sure, she may look the part, but people are afraid of the capabilities more than the species itself. And if she gets in a rut, I'm always looking for more assistants. I'm sure Airi would appreciate the company. It'd be nice to have an assistant that takes a real paycheck."

As if on cue, a small bottle of her personal brand of scotch was dropped in front of her. Oh, how she missed this. A small swig was all she needed to dull the pain just enough for her to be relaxed. God she needed that.

"It's been busy, honestly. I've been doing more medical work lately. Did some soul searching earlier though. That reminds me though, it's good that we met here. I had something for you."

Reaching into her cloak, she pulled out a sketch of the person she saw in her vision at her hometown. She's incredibly grateful that Airi was able to see what she saw, because it turns out she's terrible at drawing actual people and was able to use both to make an accurate picture. She slid it in his direction so he could get a good look at it.

"I'll let her know, then. She was apparently a soldier or something. But...yeah, if I can get her any kind of job, and a place to stay, that'll be nice. I can be nice, but..I dunno, after all the stuff that's happened....It feels a bit awkward."

At her comment, and the sketch, Soma looked down at it, frowning at it. So this was the person who ruined June's life. Pulling out his phone, he took a picture of it, beginning to type on the keypad. "I'll send this to Arikado and Yoko. Maybe Hammer too, if I can contact him. Not sure what he can do, but anything's better than nothing."

Scratching the side of his head, he gave off a small laugh in an attempt to lighten the mood. "Well..I guess since I'm single again, I should start eating those TV dinners. They're never as appetizing as they make them out to be on TV."

A soldier, huh? If she was trained in on the field medical, she might actually come in handy beyond just an extra set of hands. That might actually be worth looking into. That, and I am sorta curious about meeting this rabbit.

"The offer's always open. If she was considering it, she'd have a place to stay, 3 meals a day and a paycheck to boot. Do let her know if she considers it that I run a tight ship and she'll need to learn the basics from me in a crash course. It won't be easy work, but I can be agreeable."

"You mentioned something about contacts, right? Friends in high places. I figured it would come in handy for you. Getting this was essentially my dead end. All I've got are you and whoever you're connected to. I've got no more leads to really look into."

At his remark, the thought surfaced into her heard earlier came bubbling back to the top of her mind.

Wait did he just mention he's single now

"So Soma...last time we were here, I opened up to you and told you my life story. All of its juicy details. Would it be too much to ask for you to do a little of your own tonight? Everything was such a whirlwind that night that I still barely feel like I know much about you. All I do know for sure is that I like you, but I'd like to know more."

If I'm really gonna drop the question, I need both him and myself to be absolutely sure. One way or another, we're clearing the air tonight.

"I'll let her know, then. She should be a big help..I hope."

Leaning back, he closed his eyes at her request. His story, eh...?

"Alright....Get cozy, I'm not holding back." And so he told her. He told her of his friend Mina. He told her of the castle suddenly appearing, of him realizing his powers for the first time. Of the revelation that he was Dracula, of the trials and tribulations he ran into during his journey. Of the battle with Chaos, and the allies he met.

He told her of Celia and her cult, of their attempts to create a new Dark Lord. Of everything they pulled, and everything he and his friends did to stop them. As he did, he realized one thing....

"Wow, my life sucks. It's not boring, but it sucks."

She listened intently to his story. He had truly been through quite a bit, and at such a young age, too. It's a miracle he didn't break from the trauma of it all.

I still can't believe people would actually want to resurrect Dracula. Didn't it take that vampire hunter clan hundreds of years to finally put him down for good and people STILL won't give that up?

"I wouldn't say that, really. Sure, you had a busy few years dealing with your literal inner demons, but you persevered through it and made some friends along the way, right? It sounds like you wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them, too."

She looked back at her drink nostalgically. "I...wish I kept in touch with my old friends like you do. The only one I still talk to is Makalov. Sometimes I wonder where things took them, you know? If they're still doing well."

alright, stop dancing around the bush, pose the goddamn question

She took a swig, purely for confidence, and said "So...what are you going to do now? Have you thought about what you really want from this place?"

"Heh..Never thought about it like that. I guess I just wish I could have been a normal guy...Though I guess that's rather boring. And..hell, I don't see anything stopping you from keeping in touch with people. Send them a letter or something, if they don't have internet...And if they still live in the same area."

At her question, he shook his head. "Not sure. I guess I'll go where the wind takes me. Maybe get a job writing or...I dunno, working at a cafe. Or maybe as a gym instructor..Though I don't think the tight clothes would help me....Do they even wear tights?"

"Boring...can be nice, sometimes. I don't think I can ever go back to things like "Normal" or "Boring", but part of me wouldn't want to. My life might not be perfect, but it's mine, and it's all I've got."

At his remark, her mind with back to everyone she used to live with. "That's the thing though, a lot of them...spread out. Did the same that I and Makalov did, and we only happened to end up in the same place by chance. I wish I could, really."

don't imagine him in tights, don't imagine him in-GODDAMNIT

She tried her best to hide her blush behind another swig of her drink, feeling ever so slightly tipsy and appreciating the boldness that comes with it.

"A-a writer, huh? Never pictured you as the type, honestly. That said, you always did seem like the multitalented type. I suppose you'd have a lot of inspiration to work with too, hehe..."

Damnit woman, you are THIS close. JUST DO IT

"Y-Yeah. I think I could make a neat story o-or three." The alcohol was starting to make it's way through his bloodstream, giving him a bit of inebriation. If only he had a soul that could resist the effects of alcohol, and poison in general.

"Makes sense. Boring's nice at times, you're right. I could use an escape from all the crazy things I've done."

Huh...she looked kinda cute in this light. Or maybe that was just the alcohol.

The alcohol was starting to affect her. Unlike the night they spent here before, she now had her own brand here, and it was clearly having an affect. Feeling her body heat up, she slipped off her cloak to make herself more comfortable, it hitting the floor with a slight thud.

Come on, June, you're not gonna get another opportunity like this. Why are you so hesitant? What are you so afraid of.

i...i don't know anymore

Then you should at least try.

She took a deep breath, in an effort to calm herself. She swore there was something in this drink that was making her uncomfortable, but she couldn't quite nail it down. Or want to acknowledge that it was just her whole body feeling slightly more aroused at all this.

"Soma...last time we were here, I...gave you an option. You've had a lot on your plate lately, and I'm sure you've been busy, but..." she let a hand brush against his leg, trying not to seem too clingy but couldn't help herself regardless.

"...have you given it any thought?"

He felt his body heat up at her touch, as if it were to burst into flames. Staring at her, he took a shaky breath. "I..uh...Are you..sure? M-Me? I don't..want you to make a bad decision."

He wasn't turning her down, at least. In fact, a part of him was...excited by this. A few of his souls were even trying to tempt him into leaning just a bit closer to her...

"Soma, I've...had some time to think about it. With a clear head, like I said I wanted. And...I like you. A lot."

"Everything I said that night, I realized I meant. That it felt, so real. And I didn't regret any of it."

"If anything, tonight has only confirmed what I believed, that you are...an amazing person."

"But...I want to know if you're completely sure about it before anything else. I want it to be your decision, that I didn't force you into anything you didn't want."

If he says yes right now, can you think of any possible reason you might still be apprehensive about all this?

...i can't, no

Good.

She moved her hand from his leg to his cheek, gently brushing against it with her thumb. "Soma...tell me how you're feeling, right at this moment."

Soma looked at her, his face going redder and redder, before....

Well, this might have been a bad decision, but he began to lean closer. "I...like you too...A-A lot. And I'd be honored."

There, he goddamn said it. Now act on it, you have no more excuse of being "a good person" anymore.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO TELL ME TWICE

She didn't even mind the fact that he clearly missed her body language. She liked that dense side of him. She liked every side of him. She was too happy to care. Her body was burning up with desire and possibly booze but she didn't care.

Without warning, she pulled him into a powerful kiss, absolutely content with the idea that both of them wanted this. This is what she wanted, after all.

Well, that made it plain to see for anyone. Hands immediately shot up, wrapping around June and pulling her closer as he began to kiss back, attempting to even put in an iota of the same passion that she was giving him.

(Soma has been inflicted with Lovestruck!)

She hadn't felt like this in so long. Have someone match her, passion for passion. That feeling of happiness that came with someone you could trust so well. It was...euphoric, honestly. She didn't want it to stop. She could barely think through her own joy, as she continued to practically assault his lips with her own.

Even the voices in her stopped for a time. In the end, maybe this is all she needed? Someone to love her, just like back then. Someone she could lean on, and feel happy about, just by having them close.

She continued for what seemed like an eternity, adding her tongue into his, but not enough to overpower his own. Just enough to make it pleasurable to the both of them.

A soft groan escaped the man as their lips melded together, feeling as if they fit perfectly in some...strange romantic way. Perhaps Dracula was affecting him in some way. At the addition of her tongue, he began to poke and prod at it, not wanting to try and battle for dominance.

His hands began trying to pull her closer, or onto his lap. Whichever worked better for her.

Well, he picked up on that one, at least. Through it all, he's always been a gentleman.

The feeling was truly addictive. She felt like she could have kept going like this for hours. That nothing else in the world mattered right at this moment. Reluctantly, she pulled back to let both of them have some time to breathe, a small strand of saliva between them as they sat so close to each other, in his embrace as they looked each other in the eyes.

She leaned into his chest, nuzzling softly into it with the side of her head, content with herself in a way she hadn't been in so long, just laying in his arms as she could feel his heartbeat as they both huffed for air. "Soma, I don't care, if it is the booze talking...I love you. So much."

"I promise. I'll make you happy, no matter what it takes."

It was better than anything he had experienced. Better than the finest wine, the greatest pot roast that seemed to be perfectly pristine despite being hidden in a wall...This sensation was wonderful.

Content he was, to sit there, eyes closed. "I will do the same...I promise. You're a wonderful woman, June. All you'd have to do is ask, and I'd do whatever I can to make you happy."

Her statement gave her a slight pause. It was a question that she hadn't really asked herself before.

What would make me truly happy?

There was a few things, but they all seemed so far out of reach. So distant, really.

Alright, then lets not focus on those. What would make you happy, right now?

"Soma, you make me happy. Just by being you. Don't ever change, alright?"

She gave him a light kiss on his neck, before settling back into his embrace. She could fall asleep like this and probably be content. Maybe she wouldn't even have those dreams that tormented her. Until a thought crossed her mind and the blush she'd had on since this started intensified.

"Soma...did you...want to do...that? I..I don't know, am I...going too fast?"

"..."

Well, she certainly wasn't the only one. Soma's face lit up like the Fourth of July, his entire body following suit. "I..I, uh...T-That's up to you, J-June, dear. I-I g-got no complaints."