Cross Fire[Rio, Igen]

Rio grinned a little in his direction when he posed the question. She was definitely closer to others in her related family. Yugiri, Kokoro... and anyone else who wasn't named Chidori. Any time she mentioned that woman, she wanted to scowl. They were sisters, of course, and Rio actively made efforts to show her appreciation, yet Chidori never stayed around long enough to notice that.

Drunk as she was quickly becoming, there were so many memories of her that made her feel a tinge of annoyance rather than happiness. She always envied how Chidori didn't seem to care about anything at all, how she could just operate with such a laissez-faire atittude. Even so, with each swig she consumed, she wondered a little if her elder sister every indulged in alcohol. Heh, probably. At least she earned her drink. Heh. Yeah. She was enjoying some really good stuff, hanging out with a newfound companion who singlehandedly flipped her evening on it's head.

"Hell yeah. Yugiri... Kokoro. All of them are far more of a joy to be around. They work hard, they apply themselves and they're very strong minded women. M' proud of them everyday I think about em'. Yugs' is chilling on earth now and Kokoro is married' and in one of these divisions'. Can't remember it right now'. Whatta about you, Igen? You in the Gotei?"

To be certain, Rio couldn't believe how all that uncomposed language just naturally fell from her lips. She always spoke the way civilians expected her to speak. Ah, to hell with em'. It wasn't as if there was anyone here but these two. Just a drink with a cool customer.

"Mm..."

Rio stared down at her glass, pondering on Igen's comment. Reflecting on those days, most of her peers had always questioned why she didn't join her fellow graduates and become a central member of one of the Gotei United's divisions.

The rapid pace at which she developed and her tireless work ethic should have been enough to catapult her into a high rank. Rio never really regretted it. Her family required her utmost attention in Chidori's absence.. She had to bring some measure of honor and respect to their name.

If given the choice again, her decision wouldn't change. Still, as she lifted her head up to look at Igen, she quietly contemplated the idea of what it would be like to meet other people, to be around others, laugh, and enjoy herself. Hadn't she earned that much? Of course, she did. There was no questioning that. It was time to step out and pursue something new.

"Heh, my fellow academy graduates say the same thing. And honestly? I'm startin' to think you're all right. Why not? Rio Shihoin. Something seat of the Gotei United. It has a nice ring to it, don'tcha think?"

After speaking with a slight slur in her voice, Rio's eyes perked up a bit when his voice dipped, wondering if Rio was interested in seeing something cool. She had already been entertained by the events of this evening so far. One more wouldn't hurt at all.

"Lead the way!"

Rio felt so elated right now, her body was floating on cloud nine. She was honestly open to seeing what other wacky ideas Igen had in store, and where their adventure of the evening could take them.

Rio, with glass in hand, followed Igen along to wherever this cool place was. Their journey took them near Shino academy only for them to end up at the edge of a forest not soon after. They were effectively in the middle of nowhere, it seemed. With alcohol in his system, it was not too shocking to think Igen would lose track of his directions. Rio sipped at whatever remained in her glass, a hiccup or two dancing from her mouth as she giggled. Where were they anyway? She wondered. Rio gazed around with curious eyes before giving him a light punch over the shoulder.

"No idea. I don't think I've traveled this far out. Hehe, guess we're lost, huh? Well, I can't blame ya... Whatever is' in that gourd is pretty potent."

Rio was clearheaded enough to look around and deduce that maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to return back to their first spot, if Igen could lead them there, maybe she could show him around her estate. Would the servants mind? Who knows. It wasn't their first thing on her mind. She was having fun, and she didn't want it to be interrupted by some silly directions.

"Well, if we're not too lost and we can make it back to that clearin'... uh... hm. I could lead you back to my estate. Give ya a tour of what a noble house looks like'. It looks pretty cool in there'. Or we can just sit down out here and enjoy the rest of that stuff in the gourd. I'm just... phew... this night... this night has been amazin'."

Rio was drunk. There was no longer any doubting that. Slurred speech unlike her usual speech pattern and dialect, and a bubbly grin on her face. She could still decipher a bit, and possessed enough clarity that she wasn't, like, entirely out of it, but it would take a fool not to notice how inebriated she was right now.

"Nah, nah. I'm good... hehe. It feels good bein' drunk. Anyway, let me retrace the steps...."

Even amidst her drunken stupor, Rio was, slowly but surely, able to lead them out of the end of the forest, tracing her footsteps towards the large clearing. Bubbly smiling with a jovial sway to her movements, she pointed her fingers around until she nodded her head and turned towards Igen.

"Alright," she hiccupped. "I should be' able to get us there now. Follow me, Ig!"

With a glass still in her hand, Rio utilized flash step to make the trip quicker, guiding Igen by the hand if need be.. Of course, with her drunken state, every now and then, the steps came across quite clumsily.

Still, she raced onward until she stumbled up before the estate, nearly tripping over as a peel of laughter came from her throat. Rio peeked around for any servants, and the few she did see, she simply pointed' at Igen and grinned from ear to ear, unable to contain her mirth.

"Whop... Almost dropped my glass'. Uh.. yea, see that girl over there? She's with me. We're having' a fun time drinking and stuff, and I want to show her around the place'. We also sparred too! See this blooody' nose? Cool, huh?"

Rio paid no heed to the expressions the servants may have had seeing her in a state that was very much far from how she normally operated, and simply pulled Igen along, leading them into the estate to show him a tour.

"What's that... phrase. On earth.. um. Welcome to my humble abode? Yea. Check out the Shihoin' estate, Igen."

"Relax... hahaha," she hiccupped again. "We'll be fine. I don't even think that... many people ar' like around, ya know? Besides'. Your my buddy, Ig. Doubt they woulda' let ya' in' if they felt like ya' were a danger." Rio without alcohol in her system would've likely went through the proper channels and gave a more formal introduction, introducing Igen as a sparring partner with whom she trained to improve her skills. She would have likely even claimed they celebrated a breakthrough training session with drinks.

However, Rio with alcohol couldn't care less at the moment. She was on top of the world'. She was feeling herself. Days of constantly being the upstanding image of excellence was painstakingly dull, wearing on her mind as she struggled to break out of a restless cycle. Cutting loose felt so much better. With her glass in hand, Rio bothered Igen for more alcohol, enjoying her remaining hours of inebriated bliss.

...Upon waking up, Rio felt a wave of dizziness hit her like an avalanche. Groggy and somewhat unfocused, the next thing to assault her was a headache. She felt fatigued, her body felt as if it had been through the ringer, and why did her nose feel so sore?

Rio slowly rose up from the grass she had been laying in. Huh!? How did she get here of all places? For how long? She truly couldn't remember. The shihoin woman stumbled a little and found herself feeling nauseous. She took a deep breath and steadied herself as much as she was able to manage.

Is this what a hangover felt like? Rio recalled her peers complaining about those things whenever they went out to a bar. What happened? She turned around to see... the Shihoin estate. Oh... Oh no. No. There was no way she had chosen to come out of here of all places in last night's state! Her eyes shot open as if she'd seen a ghost, horrified by what her servants must have thought seeing her drunk.

"What in the world was I doing last night?" She questioned herself as she stood upright, eyes surveying the area till they chanced upon Igen. Staring at the familiar face, she suddenly gained a greater clarity of the events that unfolded the night before.

They engaged in a spar, drew some blood while doing so, and indulged in alcohol. Vaguely remembering she was the one who invited Igen to come along to the estate, Rio just looked around dumbfounded before approaching Igen, a sheepish smile lined across her lips as she rubbed the back of her head.

To be certain, she was visibly embarrassed, still thinking of how she must have looked in her drunken state of being blissfully unaware. On the other hand, piecing things together, last night was some of the most fun she had had in years.

"Last night was... something, huh?" She remarked, sighing softly as she gazed around. "Ahh, I feel so embarrassed right now. How many of the servants saw me? Everything feels like a blur..."

His content smile initially made her feel a little relaxed, truth be told. It was as if he hadn't a care in the world. Even so... of the all the places to end up. Perhaps, under a different circumstance, under a different household, she would've felt content, too. As it stood, she was still trying to fight through a hangover and her current wave of embarrassment.