Re: The Gambling House [Joshua/Hana]

Sat Jan 20, 2024 1:58 am

The Gambling House [Joshua/Hana] - Page 2 Hana_PostingHeader21

Enter: Hana Aoyama

Okay, that was somewhat reassuring. Hana held her zanpakuto in both hands, walking with it in front of her, almost like a teddy bear or a security blanket. In a way, she felt better. It was a good thing Josh told her to go get it, because now she was a little worried about going to the Rukongai. The last few times she went, things went without conflict, but she had her zanpakuto and was with a friend.

“You really do enjoy making me uncomfortable!” Hana glared at him and then bapped her zanpakuto against his shoulder. “If that is the case, then you can pay for the entire day, including everything at the gambling house! It is only fair.”

End Post

Sat Jan 20, 2024 2:10 am

Joshua gave a small shrug as his answer to her initial outburst, then chuckled as he fended off her beating. There was laughter in his voice as Hana threatened him with paying for the whole day and he held up a finger, wagging it in a gesture of negation.
“The food is on me today, sure. I’ll even cover the drinks, though I know that you don’t partake, so we’ll get you some water or juice or something. However, the money at the table is gonna be yer own. Bad habit to gamble with other’s money ya see. And you won’t learn yer own limits if yer not putting yer own on the line,” he said simply. He didn’t much like getting caught up in the division’s hierarchy, and getting saddled with a proper position, but it did come with a nice pay bump. Covering a day’s food and drink was no problem.

Not that Joshua needed his salary much. Extra cash was nice though.

They passed some men manning one of the gates and headed out into the Rukongai proper. They didn’t need to go far though, as the restaurant he had in mind wasn’t that deep into the first few districts. He grabbed a table, asking for a menu so that Hana could peruse the offerings; he already knew what he wanted. As she looked it over, Joshua pulled out the deck of cards and started shuffling them idly. After the orders were made, Joshua got back on track.
“So. How much do you know about dice and cards Hana?”

Sat Jan 20, 2024 2:24 am

Enter: Hana Aoyama

“I do-!” She was cut off. He knew. She never drank alcohol. It tasted horrible!

The moment they left the Seireitei, Hana’s mood elevated. She always had a smile and she kept looking around like a tourist seeing new things. She had been here before, so she wasn’t exactly new, but she acted like it. As they arrived at the restaurant, Hana happily took a seat and set her zanpakuto on the seat next to her, the bottom end tucked behind her a bit since it was too long on the booth. She looked at the menu, humming to herself as she read through what they had available. Hearing the shuffle, she peeked over the top of the menu for a second and then returned to reading, humming, and kicking her feet until she ordered.

“Nothing at all!” Hana said cheerfully, “Do I need to? Do they not teach you?”

End Post

Sat Jan 20, 2024 2:51 am

Ya know...Joshua had kinda guessed that answer, but he had hoped it wasn’t actually the case. He let out a small sigh and chuckle, shaking his head.
“There are two kinds of education those out in the gambling houses would give ya Hana. The down and desperate would give you a hard education; they’d take you for everything they could win off you, and they’d do it until you either left, ran out of money, or wised up. The other side would be kinder about it, in that they’d only take yer money while they made sure you understood much of the game. Not all of it, because then they have no upper hand. Its cruel, but its the way out here. Money is hard to come by,” Joshua said, shuffling the cards as he spoke.

“I’m not gonna do that. So, let’s get started. The most common games here in the Rukongai...”
Joshua laid out the games and rules they were going to be playing. He inquired after which game style Hana felt more affinity towards, and focused more on that. He gave her the advice that, until she’d learned more of the games, she should focus on one or two games to really learn to play.

Sat Jan 20, 2024 3:02 am

Enter: Hana Aoyama

Hearing his explanation of these ‘games,’ Hana was confused. They did not sound like anything she had read about in her books. “I was under the impression gambling houses were fun. I find little entertainment in being taken advantage of.”

They were there for quiet a long time, working on Hana's game and snacking the entire time. When she won, she got excited. When she lost, she pouted. When she lost a lot, she called Joshua a cheater and told him to start again because she was going to win this time! In truth, she was having a lot of fun going through the games and learning the rules. And since she learned through mimicry, she found some of Josh's tips and tricks help when watching him employ them against her.

"I am getting the hang of this," Hana said, giggling as she won a third hand in a row. Three plates of appetizers, a salad, and an actual meal had stacked up on her side. The two really let the bill pile on, but they were also there for a few hours. It had been a while since Hana was excited about something, so if he implied stopping, she asked for a few more hands or rolls, whatever got him to keep playing with her. In the end, she memorized the rules just fine and it was late afternoon.

End Post

Sat Jan 20, 2024 4:04 am

“As with just about anything Hana the point changes depending on the when, where, and why. Some people play the games just for the fun of it, betting little things and little amounts just to spice things up. Others though; they do it to try and get ahead, to gather all that they can, to claw every scrap they can. Once you get far enough away from the walls, you start finding more of the latter,” Joshua said while shuffling. There wasn’t much of a negative emotion despite the words he was saying; it was like he was saying the sky was blue or stone was hard.

Joshua didn’t seem to much notice the piling dishes. As they went along Hana was getting better and better. She’d always been a quick study, good at mimicking what she saw, and wasn’t stupid. If she could keep herself in check as far as her bets, she’d be a real opponent in these kinds of games. He was in no hurry to finish the games as they stood.
“That you are. Another few rounds, and perhaps we’ll move along and see how you do once you have more than opponent,” Joshua said, dealing out another round of cards. He reached over and took another bite off one of the plates.

Sun Jan 21, 2024 1:47 am

Enter: Hana Aoyama

“I would much prefer to make our way to the gambling house now,” Hana said. Her games with Joshua may have ignited her with a little too much confidence. She waved over the waiter and quickly asked for the bill. It was then that she noticed the piled dishes and gave Josh a surprised look. Did she order all of this? Was that a team effort? “It seems we were hungry. I recall very little eating…”

The waiter came with the check a few moments later and handed it to Hana. She read it, sucked in her lips, and handed it off to Josh. He was paying after all...

End Post

Mon Feb 05, 2024 5:11 pm

Joshua gave a nod when Hana pressed to move along. He looked up and gauged the time once more; at a guess, they’d whittled away more than enough time for the gambling den in question to have opened its doors. He began to gather up the cards and dice they’d been using while Hana flagged down the waiter. When he arrived with the bill, Hana gave a slight exclamation before handing the bill over. For his part Joshua looked over the carnage they had made of the table and plates, and gave a chuckle. They’d been both distracted and hungry it seemed. He took the bill and looked it over for a moment before letting out a low whistle.
“Well, with this I may actually have to put in some work today. Or else try and fit in a bounty before deployment inevitably rolls around,” he said aloud. He put the bill down and began to fish out some coins when he stalled, his eyes locking onto something. A sly grin rolled across his features as he suddenly started to stand up.
“Hang out a second Hana; I see an ol’ friend I need to talk with.”

Joshua walked over to someone else that seemed to work in the establishment. There was a short exchange of greetings and pleasantries before the conversation fell out of hearing register. There was a quiet, animated back and forth before Joshua held up a coin and asked the man a question. The man gave Joshua a look, then a look to the coin, and gave a single nod. Joshua flipped the coin high into the air, letting it spin in mid air before falling back down; he caught it out of the air, and gave the man a look. The man said something, Joshua showed the coin, and the man let out an audible groan. Joshua laughed, clapping the man on the back and saying something that seemed to assuage the man’s pain before Joshua waved at him and walked back over the Hana.
“Sorry bout all that. We’re good to move along,” Joshua said, laying a sweep of coins on the table. He waved the waiter back over, dropping him a few coins extra before leading the way out.

“So Hana, feeling ready for your first round of real gamblin’ at the tables?”

Tue Feb 06, 2024 6:53 pm

Enter: Hana Aoyama

Yes! They were going to both put in some gambling work today. Hana planned on sweeping the whole house. She was definitely going to line her pockets with kon, kon, and more kon! Her excitement about the days events was pulled toward Josh and his... friend? Hana watched curiously, head slightly tilted at their exchange. It did not take long for Hana to realize he made some sort of bet.

'Did he just swindle his way out of the bill?' Hana thought, blinking in surprise and a tad bit impressed. Once Josh returned, Hana chose to say nothing about it. He dropped the kon on the table and Hana raised an eyebrow. She must have been wrong since he still paid, though she didn't take the time to count it up.

The two were off and Hana followed Josh to where this gambling hall was meant to be when Josh asked a question. "Yes!" Hana said, giggling with a big smile. "I will win enough to pay my way through the year. Worrying about bills is exhausting."

End Post