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Ashes in the Breeze (Japanese Inspired 5e in-character) (nsfw)

Kinso let out a bellowing guffaw, his belly bouncing as he laughed. He wiped the tears from his eyes. “Well then you can tell them how you were cute enough to survive!” He nudged the men on his right and left. They didn’t show much expression but cracked a couple of grins at Jihi.

Kinzo’s face lit up, he beamed. “An actress!” He repeated in amazement. “Surprised to find an oni that calls herself an actress.” He smirked at Jihi. “And what does your apprentice call herself?”

“Ayano.” Hanako quickly snapped out before Jihi could, if she had decided to. Hanako’s tail was more fluffed than usual and squirmed nervously despite Jihi’s reassuring hand.

“How about you perform for us? Right here, right now.” A devilish grin formed on Kinzo’s face. “I doubt the villagers will appreciate your act more than I will. I have plenty of clothes for you to wear for costumes. How about it? A private show just for me.”
 
Jihi did not like the sound of this. She preferred to perform for a larger crowd, for one thing. More importantly, she was getting the distinct impression Kinzo wanted more than just a play. Still, there wasn't much she could do about it right now. She'd have to bide her time and not show her hand.

"Thank you, Kinzo-sama!" Jihi grinned, then bowed gratefully. "I feared we would not have the chance to perform here. You're right, I don't think the villagers would appreciate our talents. Some bandits tried to make victims of Ayano and me outside of town - they are so afraid of our kind here. I'm glad to see you, at least, are cleverer and more worldly."

She straightened back up, then put her palms together plaintively. "We will need some time to prepare. I haven't told Ayano of my new script yet, and we will have to try on these clothes you so generously offer us. Maybe you and your men can eat and drink while you wait?"
 
Kinzo eyed Jihi for a moment in silence as if he was trying to read her. His grin had long faded as Jihi spoke but returned quickly. He beamed like a child with a brand new toy. “A new script? I hope it’s a special one.” He nodded in agreement as he cocked his head slightly and looked up to the right. “Hmm I could go for something to eat. Perfect. You, show them where they can prepare.”

Kinzo pointed to the man on his left. The man nodded and stood up, grabbing his katana as he did. Stepping past the girls he slid the door open. “Come.” He barked.

“Keep an eye on them. I want my performance.” Kinzo added. As the man waited for Jihi and Ayano to follow. Stepping out of the main room, the hall wrapped around the exterior of the building on either side. Stomping through the hall, he’d lead them to another room. This one was situated just behind and to the right side of the main room.

The man slid the door open to let Jihi and Ayano in first before stepping in himself. There was a large wardrobe on the left hand side of the room and on the right was a closet full of bedding. There was a lacquered pot sitting in the corner.
 
Jihi entered the room, looking it over calmly before looking back at "Ayano" - and making note of the man's position as she did so. Instinctively, she was not pleased at his presence. Even if he was just outside the room, she'd have the chance to plan with Hanako. Kinzo had not promised their safety, and she wouldn't trust him if he had. As she thought about the man, however, her mind changed; maybe she could use him.

"Let's see what we have here," Jihi said, opening the wardrobe and surveying the contents with her hands on her hips. She did have a new script in mind - that wasn't a lie. She'd planned to perform it with her usual costumes: the traveler, the oni, the rich woman. Kinzo's clothes could open up new options, including male characters. She wasn't sure how many of them would fit her, though.

As she appraises her resources, she tells Hanako of her new script. It's based on her experiences in Horozawa, adapted for the stage (and Jihi herself): a villager meets with an oni, the villager disappears, a jealous hunter kills the oni, and a new yōkai threatens the village. A traveler questions various characters, teasing out their own perspectives, and eventually realizes the new yōkai is the villager, transformed. Originally, she had planned to make the narrative more light-hearted than reality; the oni unexpectedly survived their assassination, the villager and the hunter reconcile, and everyone grows and learns from the experience. The script she tells Hanako now, however, is the opposite: every character is consumed by their own ignorance and xenophobia, there is no forgiveness, and the village and all its inhabitants are destroyed by the cycles of revenge. Only the traveler survives, witness to the destruction wrought by hatred and selfishness. Hopefully, it would put a damper on not only Kinzo's violent impulses, but also his libido.

"I was thinking of making the oni a kitsune, if we had a third actor," Jihi told Hanako, though that was a lie, even in the earlier version of Jihi's script. There was never a plan for a third actor, and even if there was, the traveler was a less demanding role and better suited to an inexperienced actor like Hanako. "You're a lot prettier than me. Anyway, it wouldn't matter here. The villagers wouldn't know the difference, but Kinzo probably knows humans can't have sex with kitsune without dying. He seems pretty smart."

That lie is for the guard's sake. If the play doesn't put him off his mood, Kinzo might demand sex from the two. Jihi didn't relish the thought of it, but she'd be willing to sleep with him to protect Hanako. Nonetheless, she can't help but remember something else she experienced in Horozawa: the rumour she'd heard of a nearby town where women went missing and the mayor menaced the men with a group of swordsmen. That description was sounding unpleasantly familiar now.
 
The wardrobe was filled to the brim with clothing. The majority of which were actually female clothing with a decent few handfuls of male clothes. The range of clothing was wide from what was essentially rags to a few ornate kimonos that only an oiran might wear but primarily was filled with peasant clothing, things the villagers would wear. The man who had led them to the room didn’t close the door but merely stood with his back to the wall just to the right of the door.

Hanako wasn’t entirely listening as she was busy ‘sniffing’ around the room. She squinted at the corners of the room and peered into the empty pot in the corner. She slid open the closet and rifled through the bedding, her fox ears visibly perking up when Jihi mentioned her prettiness. She turned towards Jihi. “Where are we supposed to get a third actor from?”

The man outside the room was clearly able to to hear them but made no motion to butt in. Hanako, after finding no clear or easy route of escape went to the wardrobe and began to dig through the clothing. “I never thought my acting debut would be in a place like this.”
 
"Nowhere, we won't get a third actor tonight," Jihi said. "It's just that, when I first came up with this script, I was thinking of including a kitsune instead of an oni, if we could find one. But there's only us, so we'll have to make do."

She was barely even paying attention to what she was saying. The wardrobe was deeply troubling, and Jihi wasn't confident in this situation before. All of this women's clothing had come from somewhere, and somehow, she didn't think Kinzo or his bodyguards were hobbyist crossdressers or appreciators of feminine fashion. No, these clothes had belonged to a lot of different women that had come to the house and, for some reason, didn't need their clothes anymore.

As they sorted through the clothes, Jihi surreptitiously tried to paw through them for any hidden pockets that may contain weapons, tools, or other useful gear. She had her own things, but she suspected she wouldn't for much longer. At the same time, she looked for anything that would fit and flatter her. She still hoped a good performance would get her and Hanako out of there alive.

After Hanako spoke, Jihi was silent for a moment, but then looked over at her. "I didn't think it would be like this, either," she said quietly, and guiltily.
 
Not many of the clothes had hidden pockets. Some did but most of them were empty. It was likely that they tried to empty them before placing them here. But Jihi was able to find a small paring knife and a single Mon coin. Otherwise it seemed like most of the pockets have been cleared. Hanako didn’t have any luck finding anything at all.

There were a few items of clothing that would fit Jihi nicely; A red and a black haori, a light grey yukata, another yukata but with pink flowers and the bottom was cut down and made like a short skirt, a light green kimono with brown embroidered branches and a tight fitting kimono with the bottom shortened and the sleeves removed.

“So how are we going to do this? You haven’t told me the story yet.” Hanako muttered in a low tone. “I think we should just take care of the guard right outside and try to sneak away.”

“Hurry up in there.” The man outside the room grumbled. “We don’t have all night.”
 
"Let your boss enjoy his meal!" Jihi called out to the guard. "A good show can be ruined by indigestion."

She gave a reproachful look over her shoulder towards the door, using the movement to surreptitiously check whether he had his eye on them. Only when she was sure they were not being observed did she slip the paring knife into a pocket of the tight, sleeveless, shortened kimono. She'd like to get out of this without violence, but if she had to face Kinzo or anyone else alone, she'd come to them in this. She doubted they'd mind.

"We can't fight them," Jihi whispered to Hanako. "Even if we can fight the guard without making noise, there's more. We'd have to get out of the whole town without being seen. Maybe you can do that, but I can't. Even if I could, look at all this women's clothing. Kinzo is hurting this village. There has to be a way to stop him.

"And I just told you the story!" she adds, stepping closer to Hanako. "The villager, the oni, the hunter, and the yōkai, remember?" When she listed the villager, the hunter, and the yōkai, she held up the flowered yukata, green kimono, and haori layered over the gray yukata, respectively. For the oni, she'd wear her own homemade costume, skimpy as it was; if the depressing story didn't kill Kinzo's libido, she wanted it levied against herself rather than Hanako.

"You're the traveler. You ask the questions I told you so I can play the other characters and tell their stories. And remember the most important thing..."

She leaned in, gave Hanako a quick kiss, and smiled. "Have fun with it. Everything will be okay."

Jihi just hoped that was true.
 
Hanako couldn’t help but roll her eyes at Jihi about saving the village/stopping Kinzo. “Why should we care about the village? They’re just gonna call us monsters anyways.” She shrugged. “I say we get Kinzo alone in a room and we kill him. I mean it would be easy to make him horny, we could always just do a dance instead of a play.”

“Oh, right.” Hanako scratched her head. Truthfully she had only been half listening to Jihi. But she considered herself clever enough to go along with Jihi. “Sure, sure.” She waved her hand. Hanako didn’t really seem too moved by the kiss even though she reciprocated. “Of course, cus it’s so easy to have fun when a bunch of men wanna kill you.” Hanako muttered sarcastically under her breath. She seemed just a bit perturbed by the fact that Jihi could still act so positively while under threat. But that was just how she was. “So what does the traveler wear? Don’t I get a wardrobe change too?”

For Hanako’s size, there were a few options. There was a very fancy looking pink and blue kimono, a pale blue kimono with the sash ripped, a grey and a dark blue haori, an all black yukata with the sleeves removed.
 
"They might not call us monsters if we save the village," Jihi whispered with a small grin. "Anyway, we can't just kill him. We'd have to go through his guards, too."

She glanced down at the clothes, then at the guard, before leaning in close to Hanako. "If you want to trick someone, don't try too hard to make them horny. They'll know you're doing it on purpose. Anyway, I think he already wants to fuck us. I hope the play is depressing enough to stop that, but if it doesn't..."

Jihi cupped Hanako's cheek with one hand. "...let me take care of it."

She stepped back, looking at the clothes, and returned to normal volume. "The traveler represents the audience, so you should look more plain. I think the black yukata and the grey-blue haori."
 
Hanako listened to Jihi, she didn’t nod but looked over at Jihi to indicate that she was listening. She furrowed her brow after hearing Jihi would handle it. She didn’t like that. Perhaps of the danger it imposed on her or maybe she didn’t like having to let Jihi do everything for her, although Jihi had already done a lot for her. “Fine.” Hanako muttered.

Hanako stared at the plain outfit chosen for her. She sighed. “Couldn’t the traveler be rich?” She wined before finally taking the garments. Immediately she started to strip out of her own clothes. Like before she didn’t wear any undergarments and stood completely nude in the room. Slipping into the black yukata she closed it up and tied it around her waist. “It’s uncomfortable.” She complained, pulling on the haori over top.

Perhaps he could hear Hanako changing but the guard outside the room had peeked in to snatch a glimpse of Hanako before she pulled on the yukata. Perhaps also hoping to catch a glimpse of Jihi changing as well. “Leave your own clothes in the wardrobe.” He grumbled.
 
That's a good point, Jihi thought. The story was based off of Jihi's experience, and she wasn't rich, and the traveler was a stand-in for the audience, and Jihi had never played for a rich audience before. But this time, the audience was rich, or at least richer than anyone in town. At least, she was confident he could wear whatever he wanted.

Wait, am I rich? Jihi wondered. She had more money than she knew how to use, but she had no idea of the real value of it. How much money do you need to be rich, anyway?

"Okay, okay, you're right," Jihi said. "The traveler could be anyone. Pick something you like and wear it." While she changed, however, Jihi blocked sight of her with her body. She'd seen the guard peeking into the room, and while Hanako hadn't hesitated to take her clothes off, Jihi had seen her naked before. Jihi didn't know how Hanako would feel about a strange man seeing her that way.

Fortunately, Jihi does know how she herself feels. She doesn't care, which is why she's not afraid to strip into the first costume she'd wear during the play. While she placed her own traveling clothes in the wardrobe, she took her backpack with her, along with the other costumes. She wouldn't let her mother's ashes out of her sight.

"We're ready now!" she called out to the guard, as if he wasn't peeking in to see their every move anyway.
 
Though while Hanako was uncomfortable wearing the black yukata, it did fit her nicely and she purposely opened it just a bit more at the front to show a bit more cleavage with her ample breasts. She didn’t really say much after changing, perhaps a bit nervous for her acting debut.

“Finally.” The guard outside the room grumbled and turned to look into the room at the two girls. “Come on then.” He jerked his head before walking back down the hall to the main room. Stopping to slide the door open for the girls and waiting for them to go in before he followed.

Kinzo was sitting on the floor just he had before but this time a small table had been set in front of him. On a tray the bones of a fish lay bare, a miso soup sat half finished with a bowl of rice with only a few grains remaining. He burped loudly as soon as the girls would enter. “There they are! Just as I finished my meal.” Kinzo flashed a devilish grin. “Go on then. Astonish me.”
 
"Excellent, Kinzo-sama!" said Jihi, placing her backpack against the wall before bowing deeply. Unlike Hanako, her flowered yukata was tied up tightly, minimizing the cleavage that would be exposed with her bow. Her oni costume later in the play would be more revealing, but she didn't want to set a sexual tone straight out. She still hoped to kill Kinzo's libido with a dour tragedy.

"We have a special show for you tonight," she continued, leading Hanako to the space that would be their stage. Unlike before, her voice was somber and serious. "It has only ever been performed once before, by those who did know it, for the story I tell you tonight, occurred before own eyes in a village much like this one. Watch and learn, because everything you are about to see, is true."

She gave Kinzo another bow, then turned to Hanako and, as they had planned, began the play.

Performance check: 25!

This assumes Hanako is aiding Jihi's check, granting advantage. If not, the result is 8, far less impressive.
 
At first, it seemed like Hanako wouldn’t be able to keep up with Jihi. Kinzo was mostly solent for the first act at least. But as the play went on Hanako quickly fell into a helpful role. She assisted Jihi well and was able to follow every queue.

Kinzo sat back and watched, he seemed enthralled at least. He did burp a bit loudly a couple of times but it didn’t disrupt Jihi’s or Hanako’s ability to perform at all. She even cast some minor illusions to add to the play. Which seemed to please Kinzo. He didn’t show much emotion though, even with the sadder parts close to the final act. Sure the oni costume got him going a bit when it was revealed. Occasionally calling rudely for the oni to come back.

But at the conclusion, Kinzo’s brow was furrowed with perhaps concern or he was just invested. He didn’t appear sad though but that beat being horny. Once the play was over he just stared at Jihi. A long moment passed before he finally started to clap slowly. “Come on.” He urged his guards to clap with him. They did. It was a whole three person applause. The guards didn’t seem that invested though.

“Come, sit.” Kinzo gestured to Jihi to sit in front of him, waiting till she did so. “How does an oni come up with such a moving story?” He asked perhaps still hung up by Jihi’s race. “Such a story worthy of the big theaters.”

He let out a deep sigh, perhaps rethinking his original plans. “You two are free to go. Thank you for the play. I’m going to bed, you two may stay the night or find someplace else to sleep.” Kinzo climbed to his feet before walking to far end of the room where another door sat.
 
Jihi tried to ignore Kinzo's interruptions, but it was difficult. Every time he burped or called for the oni (even after they died), it signaled he wasn't paying attention to the play, and Jihi was counting on its success. She strained to account for every detail, to feel her roles as deeply as she felt herself. Left to her own devices, she could easily have overdone it, reducing the play to a farce of scenery-chewing overacting and hollow emotionality. It was a miracle Hanako was there; she kept Jihi grounded, and the two played off each other beautifully. She hadn't expected the kitsune to take to acting so quickly or so expertly.

At Kinzo's bidding, Jihi knelt before him, head bowed respectfully and hands folded in her lap. "I told you," she said politely, with a modest smile, "I saw it happen myself on my travels."

As he gave his blessings for her to leave, Jihi stood and bowed. "Thank you, Kinzo-sama. It honours me that you enjoyed our performance." She kept her hands clasped behind her even as she straightened up, waiting for Kinzo to leave the room before she packed everything into her backpack and put a hand on Hanako's shoulder.

"Let's go," she whispered, her voice shaky and haggard.

She led Hanako outside, trying to get out of earshot of any of Kinzo's enforcers, before she released a shuddering breath. "Good job, Ayano," she tells Hanako breathlessly, giving her a crooked, almost frantic smile. "We shouldn't stay here too long, but let's find a bar or something. I need food and booze - lots of food and booze."
 
Hanako nodded in response to Jihi. She kept quiet as if opening her mouth might suddenly change Kinzo’s mind. One guard stayed behind and watched as Jihi and Hanako made their exit. Passing between the two posted outside they Both stared at the girls, their eyes narrowed in suspicion or maybe just a general dislike of the pair for whatever reason.

The town was dark with only a few lanterns lit in the street. There were hardly any people out if any. The guard that had taken them to Kinzo was gone but there was yet another swordsman roaming the center of town. They likely had switched out.

The town had two inns, one was very clearly more expensive than the other. There were three sort of bar/tavern/izakaya places in the town. One was closed. The other two were open, neither of them seemed more expensive than the other. Neither of them had very many patrons inside and they were all exclusively male. Hanako still kept quiet. Maybe even shaken from their encounter with Kinzo or perhaps she was stunned on how well she performed.

The first place they chose wether an inn or a bar. They weren’t greeted at all, though there was clearly a server shuffling around. There was an area they could sit at that featured some tables and get served but the server seemed to try to ignore them as best as possible. Till one of the girls attempted to get his attention.
 
Jihi's eyes scanned over the interior of the inn. Just like before, no women. Had Kinzo really taken every woman in the village? How is this possible? How could the people let him do this?

I can't let him do this, she thought. She didn't know what she would do, though. Kinzo had no shortage of enforcers, and she couldn't fight them all. She might not even be able to fight one. Even if she could, that wouldn't bring the women back. She needed more information on what exactly had happened.

She waited to be served, hoping to strike up a conversation with someone over her meal. It wasn't until the server blatantly ignored her that her eyes narrowed and she scowled. After the stress of the play, she was not in the mood for this shit. So the people here didn't trust her either. How could she even help these people if none of them wanted anything to do with her?

Except... Jihi thought. There was one option - but it was a wild one. Before she took it, she'd need to eat. She might have to hold the drink, though, as disappointing as that would be.

"Excuse me," she said sharply, flagging down the server the next time he came close.

"You probably haven't seen me before because I'm new in town, but I was just speaking to Kinzo-san," she said. She used Kinzo's name as if he was an equal, not a superior. "He told us to go enjoy some food and drinks. I hope I can tell him what a good time we had here. I don't want him to be disappointed."
 
The server spotted Jihi trying to get his attention. He paused before heaving a huge sigh and trudging over to their table. He didn’t even ask what they wanted he just stared at Jihi with an impatient look.

But as Jihi mentioned Kinzo his brow furrowed. His eyes then darted around as if he was thinking. Considering something but he still seemed confused. “Kinzo-sama… sent you?” He asked tentatively at first. “Right, guests of Kinzo-sama’s are always welcome.” The server completely changed his tune as he dipped his head in a bow.

“I apologize for making you wait. What can I get you two…” he paused as if finding the right words to say. “… ladies?”

“Fish.” Hanako demanded. The server nodded.

“And for you… miss?” He turned towards Jihi and waited for her answer before shuffling away.

There were a handful of people besides Jihi and Hanako, a group of three men sat in the corner, their yukata and jackets were left open as they showed off their hairy chests and beer bellies. A lone man sat across from them and another loner sat against the wall. The men stared at Jihi and Hanako. Hanako shifted uncomfortably but stayed relatively quiet.

Sometime later the server returned with whatever Jihi had ordered and with a salted and roasted fish that resembled mackerel for Hanako. She couldn’t help but dig in immediately. “May I uh…” the server briefly glanced over his shoulder at the men staring. “Get you anything else?”
 
"Whatever the cook recommends!" Jihi told the server, smiling. Secretly, she's still a bit annoyed at the server, but not enough to want to terrorize him, and he looked nervous already. "I trust you to know what would make a good meal."

After the server left, Jihi sat at a table, trying to examine the men around the room without being obvious about it. All of them stared at Jihi and Hanako - no surprise. They were not human (not entirely human, in Jihi's case) and they were women, and both seemed rare around here. She didn't know if she could trust any of them, and for whatever reason, she felt most concerned by the three in the corner. Something about them felt dangerous to her.

Even if their plump, hirsute bodies were distracting.

Jihi digs into her meal once it arrives, even if it's something unfamiliar to her. She wants to maintain the illusion that she's close with Kinzo, and she suspects that can only happen if she is as powerful as him. It wouldn't do to reveal her humble roots and inexperienced palate. When he asked if there was anything else he could get her, Jihi looked up at him, giving him another polite smile.

"Not now, thank you," she said. "Please come by when we are finished."

Despite her better judgment, she did drink some alcohol, but not much. Just enough to settle her nerves and deal with the stress of the day. Completely safe, she was sure. While she ate, she paid attention to the other men in the restaurant, seeing if any of them left while she was there and, in the three men's case, how they interacted with each other.

When she finished her meal and the server returned, she gave him a wide smile. This one was more genuine, her mood brightened by the food and drink. "Excellent! Please tell the cook that was a wonderful meal." ...even if it wasn't. Jihi was not a picky eater or drinker, and anyway, she wanted to put the server at ease. "What do I pay you?"
 
The server had returned with a nice large, steaming bowl of oden for Jihi. Likely the cook had a pot of the stew already cooking and didn’t want to bother with making anything else. He placed the bowl in front of Jihi along with a pair of chopsticks and a red lacquered spoon. A small bottle of sake, complimentary of course, was set down with a couple of small cups.

“Enjoy.” The server dipped his head before scurrying to the other side of the dining area. Hanako was busy picking into her grilled fish.

The loaner against the wall had passed out though clearly not having that much to drink. The other individual by himself had gotten up and left. The trio in the corner still kept eyes on Jihi and Hanako. Occasionally they’d mutter something to each other and to the server whenever he wandered over to refill their drinks. It was hard to tell what their intentions were or what they were saying without some concentration from Jihi.

You may roll a insight check and/or a perception check if you’d like.

Once her bowl was empty and Hanako’s fish was just a skeleton, the server shuffled back over. “Everything to your liking?” He asked with his hands clasped together in front of him. “I will certainly let him know. Uh for you there will be a small discount, but it will set you back 6 mon.”
 
Oden was simple comfort food, which suited Jihi just fine. Best of all, there was a lot of it. She grabbed the chopsticks and dug in, only her natural resistance to fire preventing her from burning her mouth. She had a lot to do tonight and she probably wouldn't enjoy it, so she enjoyed the food while she could. She enjoyed the sake, too, sharing it with Hanako; between that and the food, she was pretty sure it wouldn't impair her.

The one against the wall was either a lightweight or pretending to be unconscious. If it was the latter, he was dedicated to the role. Jihi paid more attention to the three in the corner, as they were definitely paying attention to Hanako and her.

Insight check on the three men: 16
Perception check on the three men: 9 (I added a proficiency bonus on hamete, but she's not actually proficient. My mistake!)

When Jihi was done, she burped lightly, then straightened up, trying to look dignified and worldly. As the server gave her the price, she smiled, handing him a sho coin.

"I'm sorry, I'm out of mon. I hope this is alright." She stood and bowed, giving the server a look down her cleavage while trying not to make it obvious. She was in a good mood and the sake had made her a little randy - and she wanted to get her fun in while she could. Just getting Hanako to agree to her plan would be difficult, let alone carrying out the plan itself.
 
The trio were definitely either not fond of the girls or had something else in mind. But it was clear their exact intentions weren’t so friendly if they were planning something. Which it did seem like they were plotting something with how they exchanged quiet words amongst one other.

From where Jihi was sitting in relation to the men it was hard to see what they were carrying with them so there was no telling what sort of weapons they might have on them. They also kept their hands and movements relatively hidden.

The server’s eyes clearly hitched on Jihi’s cleavage as she bowed forward. “O-oh, that’s quite alright.” A small chuckle escaped his lips. “Is there anything else I can do for you ladies? It might be a bit dangerous wandering around town at this time of night for you. We don’t have any accommodations like a proper inn, but we do have private rooms that you may rest in.” The server seemed genuinely concerned for the girls now at least on the surface.
 
Jihi looked over her shoulder at the men, making no secret of the fact that she was watching them. After maintaining a poker face for a long moment, the corner of her mouth turned upward into something that could either be a confident smile or a smirk. With that accomplished, she turned back to the server. "Sorry for the trouble, but I have another request. I'd like to buy a round of drinks for the three men in the corner."

She was less sure about the server's other suggestion. She hadn't planned to stay the night; she had work to do, and she was a little anxious about sticking around after lying about her relationship with Kinzo earlier - he was a powerful man, and probably wouldn't appreciate that if word got back to him. On the other hand, she had to sleep sometime, and doing so out in the wilderness wouldn't necessarily be safer than doing so in a private room.

She waffled in indecision for a moment before she realized, belatedly, that it wasn't just her decision. She glanced at Hanako, feeling guilty - maybe she could blame the alcohol for her thoughtlessness. Leaning over slightly, she asked, "What do you think, Ayano?" she asked. "Would you like to stay in a room tonight, or move on out of town?"
 
The men stared back unwaveringly even after Jihi flashed a smirk. The server was genuinely surprised that Jihi was offering to buy the men drinks. “O-of course!” He responded and nodded his head. “I will get them their drinks while you two think it over.” He then slunk away.

Hanako sat with her head propped up on her arm, eyes half lidded. She was staring off into space, her ears twitching as they angled towards Jihi at the mention of her fake name. “Hmmm?” She lifted her head up towards Jihi. “I wanna stay in a room, I’m getting sleepy.” She muttered before turning her head back to where it had been resting.

The server returned with the men’s drinks and shuffled over to their table. It was hard to hear them talking but it could be assumed that he was explaining that Jihi had bought them drinks. The trio looked confused at first, then suspicious then back to confusion as if trying to sus out Jihi’s intentions. Then finally they all turned towards Jihi with a scowl before it instantly twisted into pleased grins, they raised their cups.

The server returned. “They seemed quite pleased with your kindness and don’t worry about payment this time.” He smiled at Jihi, likely the sho from before would cover it. “Have you had time to consider the offer?”
 
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