Charisma's Your Dump Stat, Isn't It? [Vanyel, Sora]

He wasn't really prone to going home these days. Brought back too many memories of the last Lunar New Year he wanted to celebrate with Calypso before she kicked the bucket. But, there was still a fondness for his home, its culture, mythology, and even foods. Calypso would want him to move on anyhow, so, despite how he felt about it, he forced himself to take a bit of time for himself back home.

Walking down past the Chengdu museum, he noticed someone. It wasn't like they were standing out with what they were wearing, more of how they were acting. A guy was taking some steps away from a girl that was talking to him. She wasn't doing anything really threatening or anything, but the guy definitely wanted out. Raising an eyebrow, Vanyel quietly jogged to the crosswalk, slipping across the street and coming up behind the guy, gently tapping him on the shoulder.

"Hēi, yīqiè dōu hǎo ma?"

...Shit. He was in China, and his first instinct was to speak Mandarin. Blinking a couple times, he opened his mouth to say something again, caught himself, before clearing his throat and speaking again -- this time, speaking English.

"Uh, sorry, force of habit. Just wanted to ask if you were okay. Ya look like you've seen a ghost."

It was midday, hot, and Sora was starving. The only thing Sora wanted to do was return the woman's purse and be on his way. He had retrieved it from a dirt-bag purse snatcher for her, but she was insistent on repaying him. He refused, of course, but any time he tried to step around her, she'd conveniently block his way. The more surprising thing was that she could see him. Some of the population could, but this was still a rare occurrence. Sora looked around, trying to find some sort of exit. Luckily, he was saved! Maybe? His Mandarin was not that good.

"I, uh..." Sora looked back at blue eyes, then to bright eyes, and back to blue eyes again. "Uh, c-can you tell h-her.. Um, I... Well... I just wanted to return this." Sora held up her bag, eyes panicked. "I know sh-she speaks my language and all, but she doesn't seem to... you know... understand? I don't want to... um... Yeah. Help?"

Ah, the guy was just tryin' to do the right thing. Respectable, though he could tell that he was...not really comfortable around girls. Or, at least not this one in particular. So, with a light shrug, he took the bag from Sora's hands, offering it out to the woman.

"Nǐ hǎo. Nà jiāhuo zhǐshì xiǎng tuìhuò, bù xūyào huíbào tā."

Basically, greeting the girl, saying that Sora had just wanted to return the bag and that he didn't need to be rewarded. She had a bit of a sour look, but took the bag and left. He offered a wave as she left, even if she didn't see it, before turning back to Sora.

"All taken care of. Want a cig? Ya really look like you could use one, uh...what is your name? You a tourist or somethin'?"

The interference was welcome! Sora let the bag go, and nodded along as blue eyes explained things for him. Thankfully, the woman finally took the hint and left. Sora slouched, letting his arms and head hang, as if all energy had been drained from his body. He covered his face with one hand and shook his head.

"Thanks, but I don't smoke, I drink," Sora said and then straightened his back, regaining his composure. "Uh, thanks for your help with that. Women are the devil."

Sora looked at the guy and something clicked. "Wait, I ain't that good at sensin' shit, but you're not a shinigami, but you can see me... She could too, but her spiritual pressure what weak as hell. Yours... Not so much. The hell are you? Quincy?"

"S'all good. I know a bar near here if you're interested."

Whoa, that came out of left field -- that whole "women are the devil" bit. Well, sure, he wasn't the peak of romanticism himself, but that was pretty steep. He raised an eyebrow in response, but shrugged, tucked a pack of cigs he had in his hand back into his pocket. He needed to keep trying to kick the habit, anyhow. But, then the guy asked about what he was.

That was a story and a half for anyone, but, he didn't really intend on spilling the last three four-ish years of hell onto this random guy.

"Nope. Just a regular human. Used to be a demon before this, but, thank Christ that nightmare's over. Now I'm just a normal, good ol' human. Guessin' since it was your first comparison, you're a Shinigami? The hell are you doin' all the way out here? Don't you guys usually stick to your own realm? What, you on vacation?"

"Yeah, let's do that." Sora said in response to the bar. His next comment got a look of surprise though, one that made him rethink what he said. It may have come off wrong, or too strong, or something. He didn't know! "No! Uh, that's not what I mean," Sora said, making an assumption about this man's reaction. "They just do that thing with their eyes! And any time I tell them "no," they're more insistent. I don't get it!" Sora sighed and waved both of his hands, as if to throw that conversation away.

"The name's Sora." he said, holding out a hand.

Ah. This man was once a demon... Now, a human? The fuck? How did that shit happen? Sora waved that question off as quickly as it came. Wasn't his business. "Ah, yeah. Kind of. Ain't part of the Gotei or nothing, so I'm out here doing my own thing. I'm not about that robotic soldier life. Ditched that shit the moment I could."

"So, where's this bar you mentioned? Definitely want that drink."

The guy's assuming reaction only made him raise an eyebrow, before shrugging softly. Seemed the guy just...wasn't good with girls. Eh, not like it was that big of a deal. He wasn't much better. At least he didn't outright hate them the way Vanyel had thought he did. As the guy offered a hand, Vanyel gave him a smile, extending a gloved hand to shake his.

"Vanyel Xiaoyang. Nice to meet ya, Sora."

He gestured to the street, beginning to walk down it. Huh, so there were Shinigami that weren't with the Gotei. He didn't know much about the Gotei, but, sometimes a military organization wasn't for everyone. But, that made him wonder -- Shinigami still needed to eat and stuff, didn't they? How the hell was this guy making a living on his own? Questions for the bar.

"Should be right 'round this corner. It's a lil off the beaten path, but, it's a pretty chill place. Not too big, comfortable amount of people, and good drinks."

He turned around the corner, pointing out a small, dim set of lights that didn't really stand out much in the morning sun. As the two approached, it wasn't a surprise that they were ID'd, but eventually let inside. Vanyel guided Sora to the bar, picking a pair of seats at the end.

"Anythin' specific you want? Figure you might need a translator for this, so, lemme know what you want, and I'll pay. Don't get too carried away though, I ain't made o' money."

Sora's demeanor calmed as Vanyel took his hand. Seeing as he got a full name from the guy, he added his own, "Sora Yasutake, then." Sora said, smiling. He followed Vanyel to the bar, taking note of little things he saw as they made their way down the street. With his luck, he'd get lost if he didn't pay attention to little landmarks. They turned a corner and Vanyel pointed out a dimly lit place. It wasn't anything that would stand out. He presented an ID at the door and followed Vanyel in. The ID went back into his wallet, carefully tucked away in an inner shirt pocket.

"Appreciated, man." Sora said and thought a moment. He remembered one drink he liked in China. "I'm pretty simple. Uh, how do you do say it... It means like, 'white ghost' or something. Starts with a B? Shit, what is the name..."

Vanyel chuckled softly as the guy struggled to figure out what the drink was. Simple, "white" in the name, and it started with a "b". Didn't take a lot for him to figure it out. He gave him a pat on the shoulder, calling the bartender over and relaying an order for baijiu, and a jade cocktail for him.

"The drink you're thinkin' of is probably baijiu. It doesn't mean 'white ghost,' it just means 'white liquor.' It's pretty much Chinese vodka. Still a good drink from time to time, though."

He leaned onto the bar, letting his arms rest against it. He felt a little prudish, ordering a full-on fancy-ass cocktail, even if it was pretty simple to make. But, fuck it, he liked the taste and the color.

"Mine's a jade cocktail. It's pretty tasty. Not too dry, not too sweet, nice and balanced. Anyways, what're you doin' in China? Did ya just wanna visit for Lunar New Year?"

Sora must have given enough because Vanyel figured it out. Sora nodded and smirked. "Yeah, that's man. I'ma try to remember that." Sora said as he sat down on a stool and slouched over the bar. What Vanyel described sounded good, at least in theory. He rarely ordered cocktails, but why not? "Sounds good, may try it next."

Finally fully relaxing, he sighed and leaned his head left and right, cracking his neck each time. "I, um... Not really, no. That was just dumb luck." Sora said, chuckling. "I don't exactly have a place to stay, so I travel all the time. Figure if I find somewhere to stick around, I'll stop, but until then... Gonna just keep on wandering."

Their drinks were both given to them. Sora took a drink of his and coughed. It never tasted good, but it was what he knew. "You know, maybe I'll try one of them like now." Sora said. "I forgot how funky this shit actually tastes. Wow." He signaled the bartender and ordered one of Vanyel's Jade cocktails, pushing his away.

"I got this though. You ain't paying for a new drink because I didn't like my first. That's not cool." Sora said, pulling out his wallet and then asked a question. "So, I'm curious about somethin'. What's with the D to H thing? How the hell did that happen?" He intentionally said it that way to prevent anyone from listening in.