2025-12-21: A Degree In Partying
- Log: A Degree In Partying
- Cast: Niko Kirisaki, Minako Arisato
- Where: Iwatodai Dormitory environs
- OOC Date: December 21, 2025
- IC Date: August 29, 2012
- Summary: Not wanting to betray the expectations she believes Takaya placed in her, Niko starts casually casing the Iwatodai Dormitory, to gather intel and determine a good approach for the upcoming strike against SEES. She is spotted and approached by Minako, with the aim of figuring out what she's up to. But the ensuing conversation quickly goes way off topic, causing both of their original intentions to go entirely off the rails, culminating in... phone numbers being exchanged??
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Things that Niko Kirisaki never expected would happen: Takaya of all people taking one of her flippant suggestions seriously and telling her to show him what she can do. No pressure! Seriously, does she look like someone who could organize anything, even something as straightforward as a raid?
Well, regardless of the how, it happened, and now she's got to put her money where her mouth was. Technically she doesn't have to, Strega members don't have to do anything. But this is the first time Takaya ever showed any sort of Expectations towards her. She's not about to pass up the chance to impress him. And so...
A punk has been hanging about the SEES dorms. Perhaps it wouldn't stand out so much if most people passed by the same building several times in a day. But Niko has a way of standing out. Not too many high school age girls out there who dye their hair hot pink, wear torn clothing which only covers the bare necessities of decency, use an actual steel chain for a belt, and have abs for days. A description which is known to SEES, and thus if she were spotted doing this, the conclusion of 'Strega is hanging around' would be easily reached.
Which would be no skin of Niko's back, really. She's not just casing the place, she is also kind of expecting, perhaps even waiting for someone to call her on it. That's when the real fun begins.
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
Minako heard something about a punk hanging around the dorms. Really, the SEES leader isn't that bothered about it -- but a few murmurs came her way, and Minako decided that she should at least go see what the situation is. And thus, on this fine summer day, she comes out. She has a T-shirt and blue jeans on today.
The T-shirt is black, with the logo for Bump of Chicken on it. She steps out -- peering about -- before she spots Niko. The pink hair, the chain belt, and the torn clothes... Minako knows who this is.
And she heard, too: this may be a member of that weird 'Strega' group.
So Minako squares her shoulders and approaches. She lifts a hand and she smiles. It might seem incautious -- but Minako often hides a lot behind her smile.
"Hi, there."
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
If there was any doubt if Niko was just passing by or actually paying close attention to her surroundings, those are probably removed by how quick she is to whirl about in the direction of the dorm entrance when she hears the door open. Absolutely paying close attention to what was going on in that direction.
But she doesn't look alarmed, guilty, or anything of the sort. Oh no, her smile is an easy match for Minako's, and how much it hides is equally unclear. She responds exactly in kind, lifting a hand and replying, "Hi, yourself." It's so natural, anyone seeing this would think these two are friends.
If Niko does know who Minako is, she gives no indication of it in her initial reaction, glancing back to the door over Minako's shoulder. "You live there? So, Gekkoukan, right?" And because Niko wouldn't be Niko if she didn't poke at least a little, she proceeds to venture, "Name's Niko, call me Niko-chan! I've met some of your friends already... maybe you've heard of me? From Rika-chan, or Yuka-chan maybe?"
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
Minako keeps smiling at the 'Hi, yourself.' They could -- indeed! -- look just like friends. Of course, Minako isn't so punk, and her outfit has a bit of girliness to it. The hair being done up, with the threads to make it just so.
"I do," she says. "It's a nice dormitory! Bit of a haul to get to school every day, but..." She glances sideways, down the street towards the station. Then, she looks back at Niko. "Minako," she says. A pause.
"You mean... Ririka Kawase and Yukari Takeba?" she asks. "Not from them as such... but I think I heard something about you. So... what brings you here?"
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
The girliness levels of Niko are highly debatable, certainly from just looking at her. The way she carries herself still tends to fall on that side at least. On the outside, perhaps it's the golden bracelet and necklace that clash the most with the rest of her appearance. ...One would be forgiven to wonder whether those even belong to her, but then, her bracelet does have 'Niko' engraved on it, in English.
Regardless, her attitude absolutely appears friendly, overly so even. As soon as she has the name, there doesn't seem to be anything but cheer in her voice when affirming, "Nice to meetcha, Mina-chan!" That address can't have been a surprise, given how she was just heard addressing a couple of other people who would certainly NOT describe her as a friend.
"That's them~" she confirms cheerfully when their full names are spoken. Ririka, who fought her in front of Kasuyagama when Strega blocked entry to people trying to interfere with the 'gang violence' going on there, and Yukari, who fought her when Strega was standing guard for Kaneshiro in his Palace. Both later approached in a seemingly friendly way in spite of everything, which somehow wasn't reassuring to either of them. Strega is clearly bad news in general. And yet...
"No reason! I'm just hanging around, kinda bored, kinda hoping someone'd come up and talk to me. Maybe hang out a bit? I know alllll the good places to party in town."
...She keeps acting like THAT, just casually with her arms folded behind her head, looking every bit as bored as she claims.
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
The friendly attitude is not quite what Minako expected of someone from Strega. But, why not? She scarcely understands what Strega really is. She just knows they have sometimes caused trouble for SEES members in the past -- and they have Evokers, of some kind.
"Ah, yeah. I heard something about that and about you," Minako says. The smile only flickers a little bit.
"I did notice you out here," she says. "So here I am. But... what kind of party are you thinking about?"
Her head tilts. "The kind you had with Kawase and Takeba, or... some different kind?"
She isn't, really, at all what Minako expected.
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Strega most certainly has Evokers. If one were to look carefully when Niko moves, one might catch a glimpse of hers sticking out from the inside of her jacket. Though it may not be strictly wise to scrutinize Niko too closely. Who knows how she might react? She might not visibly react much at all, much like how she doesn't when Minako confirms having heard things about her - things that she should be able to infer the nature of.
Or, she might react the way she does when Minako says she noticed Niko out here, prompting a wide grin. "Ohhh, you noticed me, huh? Checking me out? Well, that's fine, you can look as much as you want~" Niko Kirisaki is an absolute champion at Making It Weird.
Thankfully, she is also easily distracted, giving Minako a confused, doe-eyed stare when asking to clarify the nature of this party. "Eh? I never got to party with Rika-chan or Yuka-chan. Didn't even get around to asking them, they looked pretty uncomfortable. Weird, right? You ever talk to your friends and they just get all nervous for no reason? What's up with that?"
This almost certainly does not match anyone else's perspective of how she came across. Either she genuinely doesn't realize that, or she is an amazing actress.
But she's not going to get too hung up on that, quick to shake her head. "You really don't know what people mean when they say 'wanna party'? That's sad, but don't worry, Niko-sensei can teach you everything you need to know!" Then again, maybe this will be bad to let her keep going with too...
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
Minako is many things, but perceptive isn't one of them. She doesn't quite catch the shape of the Evoker underneath Niko's jacket. Instead, she is considering what Niko says -- and that remark gets her cheeks to turn red and causes her to sputter. "Wh-what?"
She shakes her head, quickly. "N-No! Not like that! You just--you were nearby!" she says. Then, a beat, and she sighs. She glances to the side, and feels rather uncertain that Niko is friends with either Ririka or Yukari.
But, that might be the point.
"There's a lot of different kinds of parties," Minako says with a sigh. "What kind do you mean?"
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Niko lives for those kinds of reactions. She openly guffaws, pointing at Minako's priceless expression. "Aaahahaha, the look on your face, you should've seen it just now! Ahhh man... I can see why you'd be friends with Rika-chan and Yuka-chan, they make some real good faces too."
So she's like that with everyone. Some might consider it 'messing with people', but whether Niko herself considers it that... well, she can be kind of hard to figure out. She at least hasn't been clearly and openly malicious...
She's also Over It pretty quickly, just moving on like nothing happened. "Okay, okay, you heard me wrong, I didn't say anything about parties, I said 'partying', like the verb. Alright? You with me so far? Or would it work better if I put on glasses first?"
She genuinely considers for a moment whether doing that would increase her Teacher Power, but then shakes her head. "Forget it, anyway! 'To party', that is, 'to go out', 'to hang', 'to chill', but in an active sorta way. Y'know, like dancing's a good standby, but you could do whatever you want. As long as it's fun, that's what makes it partying!"
She crosses her arms, nodding to herself. Well done Niko, you explained all that perfectly. "You get it now?"
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
That gets Minako to frown. She folds her arms and then she frowns. "I don't see what's so funny! You were just--just teasing me," she says, with a sigh. "Not that either of them mentioned that sort of thing."
She blinks -- and then she frowns, as she tries to keep up. She doesn't quite get over it as fast as Niko. But she does her best to follow along. "Glasses? What would--"
But, an explanation is forthcoming.
"Wait, so--so a party isn't necessarily involved with partying," Minako says. "And partying can be... anything." Her lips purse.
"Y'know, I dare say I might be more confused than I was before," she concludes. "Okay, so what do you do for partying?"
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
"That's 'cause you couldn't see your own face!" Niko's reply is as immediate as it is perfectly logical, from where she's standing. Even your own funny face is funny, that's the whole concept of a funhouse, which has the word fun right in there! ...So no, being able to peek into Niko's mind would not have helped, if it doesn't make sense to you already. Then again, look at her. Does she look like someone who knows what embarrassment even is?
Never mind the glasses - clearly they help you look smart, just look at Jin - Niko makes do without them. And look at what a good job she did, she got it across perfectly! She applauds Minako with her hands in front of her chest, smiling brightly. "Now you're getting it!"
Except Minako doesn't, apparently. Which visibly confuses Niko in return. What's confusing about 'partying can be anything you want'? "As long as it's fun," she does pointedly add. If it's not fun, why bother?
Oh, examples, she needs examples, well, Niko has examples. "Me? Usually go clubbing. You know Escapade? That's where I hang a lot. Arcades, those are pretty fun. Karaoke bars... I love singing. You into any of that?"
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
"That--that kind of makes sense," Minako says with a sigh. This may say more about how Minako's brain functions, though, than anything else. Her head tilts for a moment as she thinks about it. Should she put her faith into Niko Kirisaki's way of thinking, though?
"Right, but there's a lot of kinds of fun, right?" Minako says. "Like, sometimes I do a long hike for fun. Or I read a good book for fun. But that's not partying, right?"
Then, though, she blinks -- and she nods quickly. "Yeah, I know Escapade. I even went in a few times--there's this old monk there... and karaoke is great, too."
She cracks a smile again. She looks serious. "What about when you fought Kawase and Takeba?" she asks. "Is that partying?"
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Even Niko raises an eyebrow at that one. She doesn't hear she makes sense too often. Usually that's a pretty good indicator that she's stumbled upon somebody else who doesn't quite fit in. Curious, when judging from what she's seen so far, she'd say that Minako is someone who'd have no trouble fitting in with the Normal Crowd.
Such things, Niko also thinks about, but doesn't talk about. It's far more natural for her to flow into the conversation about the definition of partying, that was definitely the more important topic anyway. "Right, right. Because that's boring as shit, if you're doing it all by yourself. You'll never have as much fun by yourself as you could have with others around." That's the way she sees it, anyway.
Her smile brightens when she hears that Minako's actually been to Escapade. "Oh hey, rock on," she says, briefly throwing a sign of the horns. "So you've got the Guts, and already figured out the trick to acting like you belong there. Way to hold out on me, you made it sound like you were totally clueless." She pauses, smile fading briefly. "Monk's a sourpuss, but whatever."
When asked about those fights, the smile fades entirely, and she frowns... but not because she's displeased, per se. She's thinking about it. Did that count...? In the end, she shakes her head. "Nah. I had fun playing, but in the end, 's just work, y'know? Feels wrong to count work as partying."
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
The truth might be that Minako is the sort of weird that fits into most crowds.
"I dunno about that," Minako says. "Sometimes I want some downtime from being social! And sometimes I want to do it with a friend, too. But..." She trails off, as she thinks about it for a moment. "I like going out and having fun with folks."
She cracks a smile -- then she nods her head. "Yeah. Walk in confidently, and you're good," she says. "And hey--he's fun, once you get to know him."
A beat, then, as she listens.
"Just work?" she asks. "So... that sort of thing. That's your job, basically?"
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Niko's expression sours at the mere notion of 'downtime'. "I mean, you do you, I'd rather just have as much fun while-- as I can." Odd slip of the tongue there, but Niko won't leave an opening to ask after it. "So yeah, that's what it's all about, having fun with folks. You get it now, I officially name you a graduate of partying." You can almost hear her adding 'which is totally a thing, shut up'.
She fingerguns when Minako totally gets how to handle Escapade. "Got that right. That's how you get things done in life. You wouldn't believe how many people I've convinced I'm twenty."
This is absolutely an accomplishment, since imposing physique aside, that is not at all a face nor an attitude that appears anywhere near twenty. In another world, she and Minako might have been classmates.
That would definitely have been another world, however. Even Niko tones down the flippancy dial when the subject turns to her job. "Well, yeah. Everyone's gotta live. Not all of us have a home to go back to."
She makes a displeased noise, before the smile returns, and she fishes a phone out of her shorts' pocket. A smartphone - it doesn't look cheap, nor very old. "Forget about that, let's talk fun. Gimme your number, we'll party sometime, 'kay?"
Oh yes, she's totally serious. Like she said, work is work, partying is something else entirely. This is what they call 'work-life balance'.
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
'As much fun while--'
It doesn't show in Minako's crimson eyes beyond a slight narrowing. But there is a look that speaks volumes. She will remember that; something about that slip of the tongue seems like it is something worth remembering. Even if she cracks a smile. "Hooray, I can add a degree in partying to my list of accolades~"
Then, her eyebrow raises. Minako actually whistles, softly; she is surprised that Niko pulled off looking twenty. She won't ask if she used it for crimes, however.
"...Yeah," she says. "Everyone's gotta live." She can't argue with that. Even if she doesn't approve -- she thinks she understands. Then, though, there is an offer. Minako hesitates for a moment.
"Sure," she finally says -- and hopes she won't regret it. She pulls her phone out, and holds it up, displaying her number.
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
Niko frequently says things she is 100 percent serious about in that exact same tone, so clearly she's not going to assume that Minako is any less genuinely happy about her new degree of partying. Job well done!
And then it's Niko's turn to puff out her chest, proud of her accomplishments in deception. Which, for the record, have absolutely been used for law-breaking purposes. "Telling ya, just act confidently and meet challenges head-on, that's how you get places." ...That's how she gets places, anyway. Looking like you could twist people into a pretzel probably helps a little bit in being convincing.
Niko absolutely hasn't been saying everything in regards to why she does the things she does, but... before she knew it, she'd said a little more than she meant to. It's strange, how she gets the sense that on some level, this girl understands. She didn't expect that much understanding to be possible, not from someone who isn't the same situation.
All the more reason to stay in contact, by her reckoning. After all, you only truly get to know someone by the way they party.
It's probably not in the least bit unsettling, how she keeps making giggle noises as she adds Minako's number, punctuated by saying out loud exactly how she's listing it. "Mi-na-chan~ There!" She tries it out immediately, sharing her number by means of calling Minako's phone. "Now, you be sure to list that as Niko-chan! If I find out you didn't, I'll be very disappointed."
Yes, Niko is pleasant enough while she's in a good mood. But who can say what she'd be like if she were to be disappointed? Or if she'd been rejected just now, for that matter? Perhaps there were no truly good choices to be made here.
<Pose Tracker> Minako Arisato has posed.
"Hey, it's worked for me, too," Minako says. She is one of the co-leaders of SEES, after all. And she is the one more prone to rushing right in. Of course, she doesn't have a six pack like Niko does, so Minako has to go on boundless energy even more.
She keeps smiling -- even if her eyebrow twitches a little at those giggling sounds. She repeats, with a sigh: "Mina-chan?" she asks. Then, she does a little start as her phone rings.
"All right, let's see--add contact..." She presses a couple of buttons. Then, she looks up at Niko -- and she gives her a look, as she types. "Niko..."
She does a lengthy pause, for dramatic effect.
"...-chan," she says, as finishes typing.
<Pose Tracker> Niko Kirisaki has posed.
"That's what I like to hear," Niko responds to Minako's assertion of going through life the way Niko does, oh-so-casually adding, "We'll have to test that sometime."
No, she's not explaining herself on that one. 'What Did Niko Mean By This' is a question she actively hopes will keep people up at night. That means they're thinking about her, which is only ever a good thing.
Her phone ploy likewise works out the way she wanted, so she's all smiles after that. "Good work, Mina-chan!" she says, making a v-sign before putting her phone away. "Talked a little more than I meant to today, but next time - nothing but partying, I promise!" A promise, not a threat, honest. And then--
"Thanks, I had fun, see ya~"
--she just up and turns on a heel, making to head off in the opposite direction, humming a happy tune to herself. Absolutely in a good mood, having gotten exactly what she wanted.
...Wait. That can't have been what she was originally doing out here, could it? What was she really skulking around the SEES dorms for? That... may be a thing that both Minako and Niko won't consider until later. Even Niko herself isn't immune to the Niko Effect.