Still Just a Swallow [Ira, Kasha(s)]

Wasn't really any point in lying about the situation, was there? Not like there'd be any point, anyway, she didn't exactly seem like she'd believe any of his bullshit that he could use to distract from how things were. Of course, Ira wasn't some fawning little maiden, either, and that definitely colored his stance even now.

"If we get there, we get there."

Ira almost felt weird admitting that much, but what else was he supposed to say? He'd kinda figured out quite a bit over the past few weeks, even if it'd been one hell of a weird experience.

"Can't say I'm the sort to just rush things. Don't exactly know him well enough to make a call like that, but he seems like he's got a good head on his shoulders, and he's a good looking guy."

Oh, man, he hated wording it like that.

"Eh? How borrring, opportunities pass by sleeping people."

She remarked with another swig of her booze, the Koizumi master of the searing flame laid back a bit more. Even putting aside her own thoughts that her student was uptight and a prude, she felt it was still valid to say that things that are left to wait would suffer from neglect.

What was she though but a rambling drunk, shouldn't even listen to her anyway or whatever wisdom that she spouted. It was all just bullshit her teacher pushed on her anyway, it wasn't like she'd admit to having taken it to heart even if it was just that. She grabbed anything and everything that she wanted, tried to seize it and not let go. Failure? Who cares.

At least she tried in the first place.

"Maybe so, but I've got other things on my mind than just that."

There was something about this woman that struck Ira as more relatable than most people he'd met, which was almost off-putting if he thought about it. There was a certain degree of tiredness to her voice, her whole atmosphere, that reminded him of himself, especially in those days before he'd gotten into his current predicament. Maybe it was just being old that did that, wasn't like he could make any guesses how old she was.

"Don't know him well enough to know if that's even an opportunity I wanna take, but I figure I'll figure that out in time, yeah? Can't let it get in the way of training and all that. I've got more going on in my life than just cruising for some guy or gal."

He wasn't necessarily being defensive about it, but rather just opening up more about the situation. It wasn't like he considered that much of a secret, anyway, so it wasn't too upsetting to share with her even if the conversation went nowhere. Better than just going "yeah, I guess" and letting things awkwardly fizzle into silence, wasn't it?

"Sounds like an excuse, don't wanna end up a bitter old piece of shit like me you know."

She said with an upbeat tone that did not match the self-admonishing way that she said it, another swig of booze and she nestled further back into the cushions while yawning. Whatever though, she didn't get caught up on the nuances of life and everything about it. It was just the way that she was.

"Anyway, I'm gonna lay down, you can have the rest of the bottle if you want. If you two end up fucking, try and keep it quiet. 'Kay?"

Kasha mused as she got up and left to go wander off into the back of the small abode. Leaving the bottle there for Ira if he was feeling gutsy.

The woman's tone resonated all the deeper with him as she made such a bleak comment, and it struck Ira that he'd already come unfathomably bitter once around. He wasn't trying to have that repeat itself, and considering he'd been given the opportunity to live a better life, it felt outright wrong not to do so. But, then again, that didn't mean rushing into everything.

"I'll keep that in mind."

It was the most he felt he could really say in response to all of that, and it was also decidedly true. There was something about her that put a natural respect into their interaction, and he gave her a nod of farewell as she headed off.

Well...now he was just waiting for Kasha. On one hand, the bottle of liquor seemed pretty inviting, but he didn't need to be any more off his game when he was dealing with this guy. He already knew he was probably gonna be out of sorts anyway.

Duties completed and so Kasha returned home, not idling too much while doing his usual strategy of moving as quickly through the main hall as possible to avoid having to extend any kind of time with his teacher than he might otherwise have to. It was a matter of luck though that Kasha caught the silhouette that wasn't familiar as his teacher's and paused. Ira? What was she doing here at this time, then he thought about it. She would surely have met his teacher, wouldn't she?

Ah, what a bother.

He gave a small bow and a faint smile, keeping his own concerns to himself while he looked at Ira.

"Hello again, Ira. How are you doing? I can't say I expected you this early."

Welp, there it was. Ira maintained a perfectly pleasant expression even as Kasha caught him off guard. God he was sneaky, and frankly, Ira had been mostly caught up in his own thoughts anyway. That was probably most of it, really.

"Sorry 'bout that, but I can't say I was really too excited at the idea of strolling around without a destination when I could just come by. Hope you don't mind."

On one hand, Ira knew that made him sound fairly eager about the situation, but on the other hand, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to it, so it sort of ended up being a wash. He returned the bow, of course, and his smile brightened just the faintest touch. At least he'd gotten over most of his concerns, right?

Ha, no, but he could keep his thoughts under control for now at least.

"Met your big sis. She's real forward, huh?"

He didn't exactly want to insult the woman, and it was the sort of comment that could easily just be taken as an observation. But she seemed pretty radically different from Kasha, and Ira felt like he should probably try and gauge how Kasha felt about her.

"Something like that."

Kasha noted, trailing off a bit while avoiding sharing any of his opinions on her to Ira. Family matters were hardly something to burden him with but the reserved way which he said it gave away more than he intended to, it was definitely the kind of disapproving of her attitude.

"I hope her forwardness was not troublesome for you."

It would irk him a little bit if Ira had been put off by his teacher's meddling, maybe he would even take their next spar seriously if it was the case. He contemplated lingering and decided to avoid doing so, it would be a pain if the wicked woman came back out when they were both here.

"Would you like to move on from here?"

"Oh, nah, it wasn't a problem or anything. Just caught me off guard is all, don't worry about it."

That was a pretty telling answer, especially from the way he'd said it. Ira made a note of that for later, not exactly wanting to step on any toes here even if he removed the whole other issue at hand. For now, though, best to just move on from the issue entirely. Not like that was what he came here for, right?

"Yeah, that sounds good to me. Let's blow this pop stand."

It occurred to him that sort of turn of phrase really felt out of place in this sort of place. And, really, it just kind of made him feel old. Which he was, he knew that, but at the same time it felt...wrong, coming out in his voice. Ira had to admit that these sorts of interactions always had him thinking about his situation.

Pop stand? Kasha thought that she spoke a bit peculiar in a way but it was a little refreshing that she did speak so straightforwardly. No subtext or undertones, just Ira's way of speaking. He took her affirmation though and turned to lead the way, gracefully guiding Ira to the more familiar place where they spent the last time together.

"Would you like some tea?"

Kasha wondered to ask about the accupuncture, although he did wonder if that was the primary basis of their meetings. It seemed a little insincere to view it as a plain service and so he withheld it for now, being a good host was far more important in his mind than jumping into asking what Ira wanted out of their meeting.

Better to let things develop more naturally, it was more beautiful that way, no?