voice + action ✪ we lost the war but won the battle

[herotypical]

[ a chipper voice cuts across the journals. or, at least, it's the voice of someone who is making a sincere effort to be chipper. there's work to be done and the turmoil beneath the surface can be set aside for at least an evening. can't it? ]

The liquid feast of Saint Patrick is soon upon us. So, I'm expecting you hooligans to pack Good Spirits so tightly that I won't be able to tell whether you're lab-rats or sardines. And for those of you who aren't yet up to speed on the bevy of beverage options in town, let me tell you that Good Spirits is just about as premier a pub as you can get in a town where the yardstick is made up and the prices don't matter. Ugh. Next time? I am totally putting Asch on PR duty. It'll be good for him.

[ ...right about now is the time where the young faux-entrepreneur needs to pause for a much-needed breath. ] Lately, the apparently-not-so permanent bar staff has been whittled down a bit, so maybe I should be thinking about hiring some extra hands for the seventeenth.

But while I have your attention -- I'm Buffy Summers, and I have a few vital questions that need answering: soup or salad? Pink Floyd or Led Zepplin? Paper or plastic? Crossword or jigsaw? Aniston or Jolie? Thin crust or thick crust?...Boxers or briefs?

Points will be docked for stupid questions and back-sass. Double points will be docked if you back-sass while also being Xander Harris.

[ with this questionnaire completed, buffy throws herself back into the glamorous life of barmaidenhood. you can find her at good spirits for the majority of the evening, or perhaps you ran into her earler in the day while she was attempting to track down unholy amounts of green food colouring at the item and grocery shops. ]

Comments

video!

[changethepast]

Liquid feast?

[ Yet another non-Earthling for the count, woohoo. One who, if she doesn't sound entirely normal (read: chipper) yet after that botched mission a while ago, is at least trying... ]

video!

[herotypical]

Drinking. I mean lots and lots of drinking. A feast of liquids.

video!

[changethepast]

Aha, I meant... why?

[ A little sheepish- she didn't quite catch the name given there, and wouldn't know if it was a person or a place or what anyway. ]

[herotypical]

Those who mean why should probably open with asking why. [ a smile. ] It's a celebration. Kinda. A holiday? A traditional excuse to get rip-roaring drunk, all 'cause some guy really didn't like snakes.

[changethepast]

Sorry. [ But, she smiles too, hardly a defensive person even when she doesn't have every reason to try her best in being sociable. ] That sounds like... quite a story.

[herotypical]

Ireland had too many. Saint Patrick shooed them all away. I think that's about as much as there is to it. I dunno -- I can't say that I'm fully up and knowledgeable on my Saints.

[changethepast]

Hmm... [ Serah chuckles quietly at that, even though what the shit is an Ireland some of it still goes over her head. ] I guess we had a couple of holidays like that-- maybe not specifically dedicated to drinking, but...

Any excuse works, right?

[herotypical]

Any excuse. And it's almost a shame that there's no money, here. 'Cause this Sunday would otherwise make me rich.

[changethepast]

So, are you the owner of Good Spirits, then?

[herotypical]

I'm not convinced that 'owner' is the right word, but I manage place. Mmhm.

[changethepast]

Ah, I was just wondering; I've met Asch, but...

[herotypical]

He's a new recruit. Promising, but not really flexing the most ideal people skills. Not yet. Not for the service industry, at least.

[changethepast]

He seemed pretty nice to me.

[ And she's completely serious. No hint of facetiousness at all. ]

[herotypical]

Oh? Then perhaps there's hope for him, after all.

[changethepast]

[ She met him during Valentine's week and has no other reference. So. She just laughs quietly, making her own assumptions......

That said, her mood seems to shift slightly a moment. ]

... Anyway, ah... I was wondering.

[herotypical]

You were? Wondering 'bout what...?

[ casual curiousity. ]

[changethepast]

[ She pauses for another second or so, but. Welp. Here goes. ]

Well, if I remember what I was told correctly... I think there was a guy who used to work there? [ There's an expression halfway between embarrassed and amused on her face as she leans back a bit from her journal, gaze drifting awaaayyy from the pages as her lips twitch. ] "Zack...?"

[herotypical]

...I remember Zack.

[ her tone cools, but only because she still misses the guy so damn much. ]

[changethepast]

Hm... [ Okay, okay... kind of an odd response, but. WHATEVER GOING IN FOR THE KILL ANYWAY. ] So, you probably knew Lightning too then... right?

[herotypical]

Not very well. I mean, we saw each other in passing. We sorta-talked. Sometimes. But I knew her.

[ oh. tenses are awkward: ] Know her, I guess.

[changethepast]

[ Unfortunately, Serah's all too used to people affecting past tense with Lightning. Chances are she wouldn't have thought twice about it if it weren't for the correction. ]

Oh. I'm her sister.

[ As if the pink hair doesn't already make guessing a familial relation all too easy. She tilts her head, considering...

... Gosh she really hopes she isn't walking into a love triangle thing here?? ]

[herotypical]

Her...sister. [ buffy swings back towards the journal and takes a closer look. aha. yes. that makes some sense, she supposes. ]

I never really knew her well enough to hear mention of a sister. But like I said -- only in passing. It's a pleasure to meet you, though....?

[ she asks for a name. ]

[changethepast]

[ The resemblance would be stronger if Buffy were to see her frown instead, probably. Unfortunately, the young woman is far too busy with her bright-eyed smile instead, her shoulders straightening immediately! ]

I'm Serah.

[herotypical]

...Sarah? Hmm. Pretty name.

[ easy mistake to make, really. ]

[changethepast]

Thank you.

[ Perfectly graceful... though on the inside she's not sure what to make of the name 'Buffy' in return- maybe it's a nickname? Maybe her parents were really into Haste and Protect spells? ]