Atobe Keigo (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
worldofice) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
karurarpg2016-10-02 08:44 am
worldofice) wrote in karurarpg2016-10-02 08:44 am
[LOG] Bounty
Who: Atobe & Yukimura
What: A meeting between frenemies
Where: The Ice Bar
When: shortly after Yukimura returns to the Karura
Warnings/Notes: The snark is real, folks.
Yukimura waved off one of Atobe's lackeys and made his way to the back of the bar to find his usual seat in the more private area blissfully empty. The spot was a voyeur's heaven. One could see everything if they looked hard and long enough. In his position, body language spoke loads more than lip reading could.
Besides, if intel was correct, his latest bounty was right there at the bar, nervously sipping on some neon liquid. Amateur. Smarter fugitives would try to hide in plain sight at seedier establishments, not high-end, spend-an-entire-paycheck-on-one-drink places like the Ice Bar. Well, whatever. Not his problem.
When it came to watching his targets, Yukimura was as subtle as the black-on-black design that formed the etched series of interlocking vine leaves along the marble bar. That did not stop Atobe noticing him the second he walked through the door. As with all threats to his business, he had been expected.
With deliberate care, Atobe picked up a crystal tumbler and polished its rim to a perfect shine. To most of the bar’s patrons, the young scion looked relaxed; his care in the glassware seemingly that of the perfectionists’ touch that attracted the Ice Bar’s clientele. To those more attuned to the man, he looked beyond irritated.
Yukimura looked away from his target to settle on Atobe. Not yet a target, but someone to keep an eye on nonetheless. He grinned widely and waved at the owner who appeared slightly, almost imperceptibly off. Unfortunately, the waving brought over another waiter. He rolled his eyes.
"Another drink for the man at the bar. Tell him it's from one of the ladies, but don't point out anyone. Oh, and tell Atobe I said 'hi,'" Yukimura said, waiting until the man walked away to pull out his hip flask.
Atobe did not look up from performing his tumbler pedicure when one of his waiters approached him with a slight cough.
“Atobe-sama, the gentleman in the corner… He says…” the man appeared flustered at the prospect of transmitting such a casual message to his illustrious employer.
Atobe dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “I can imagine.” His eyes rose from the glass slightly to look at a distant point on the perfectly swept floor. “Who is he buying a drink for?”
His waiter hesitated in surprise, internally wondering if the rumors were true about his boss’s extrasensory abilities. “He… um, the gentleman customer drinking the sunrise martini.”
Ex-customer, Atobe thought dryly. “Change it to a ‘paradise and perdition’,” he informed his waiter. “I am sure the gentleman will not protest. It costs significantly more.” He glanced sideways at his staff. “Bill accordingly.”
The waiter gulped his acknowledgment and scuttled away as Atobe examined the glass he had been cleaning critically in the lantern light. The crystal split the beam into a rainbow of colours. Charming. He walked over to the shelves of curving glass bottles and poured a shot from one into the glass, adding the customary olive. Then he stepped from behind the bar, his eyes diverted from the sunrise cocktail drinker as he walked to the shadowed corner where his least favorite patron sat.
“Most would consider a drink a minimal requirement for sitting in a bar,” he informed Yukimura as he placed the crystal on the table in front of him.
Yukimura's smile grew wider as he watched the waiter stumble over his words talking to Atobe. The owner wasn't that intimidating. Though, maybe the waiter was just afraid of anyone in a position of power. That smile turned into a full-out grin when Atobe left the bar and started walking towards him.
"Well, it's a good thing I have one," Yukimura said, holding up his flask. "And I already know you changed the order to something more expensive, but you don't need to worry. I have more than enough money to pay for your overpriced beverages."
“A drink purchased from the bar,” Atobe clarified in an overly patient tone. “The rules are the same as for a cinema, Yukimura, no outside food or drink. If it assists your memory to compare to a more common establishment.”
Reluctantly, he pulled out the chair opposite the slender young man and sat. Behind him, a sound of a hacking cough came from the bar. Yukimura’s evening prey had just tasted his new beverage and found it far stronger than his previous choice. Atobe’s selection was not only more costly, but designed to bring an inebriated numbness to the senses. It was a gift Atobe selected both for the man’s final hours and the continued pristine condition of his establishment. “The condition of your credit will no doubt delight my customer,” --there was gentle stress on the possessive pronoun-- “who I am sure will be thrilled to meet his demise solvent.”
"People sneak food and drink into movies all the time," Yukimura said with a shrug. "And nothing in that rule says that drink has to be mine. Technically, I did purchase a drink from the bar."
Yukimura's eyes narrowed as the man coughed. He didn't need Atobe's help in weakening his targets. "I don't kill," he said sharply. The last thing he wanted was to drag dead weight through a spaceship. He was strong, but there were limits. "Don't step on my toes and I won't cause destructive scenes in your bar."
It was a thinly veiled warning not to get in his way unless Atobe wanted to be the one to meet an early demise.
Atobe decided to drink the vodka he had brought Yukimura. It was a fine blend from the Vega system. He took a sip, holding the liquor in his mouth to appreciate its smoothness. The fingers that held the crystal tumbler flicked dismissively at Yukimura’s words. “A rose by any other name...,” he quoted, coolly. Yukimura might take his victims alive, but Atobe highly doubted whether they all continued to enjoy the benefits of breathing after delivery. They never returned to the Ice Bar. “You would do even less damage if you took your scenes to a different location.”
"Wouldn't smell as sweet," Yukimura finished. The quote also served as a reminder to check on the gardens before he grabbed his bounty and left the Karura.
"Be more discerning in your clientele then. I'm not the one that tells them to blow all their money on cocktails and fancy meals. Then again, if they all sat at the canteen, it wouldn't be nearly as fun. I'd miss multiple prime opportunities to come annoy you in your place of business." Yukimura laughed slightly and took another drink from his flask. "
“I would be beset by customers actually drinking the beverages they order,” Atobe responded dryly. He lifted the half-full glass so its clear liquid hung between them. “Do you truly fear I would poison you, Seiichi?”
Yukimura was annoyed at Atobe's use of his first name, but didn't let it show at all. No reason to give the man the upper hand. "Not at all, Keigo, but I'm quite fickle and particular. You can't make what I like." Yukimura leaned towards Atobe and smiled. "Do you fear that one of these days I'll be ordering a drink for you?"
The slate grey eyes didn’t flinch as they met that violet stare. “First rule of being a successful businessman,” Atobe told him, his tone not loud enough to drift beyond their table. “Never bite off more than you can chew.”
Behind them and one potent cocktail down, Yukimura’s target was waving his empty glass at a waiter. “Tell that… that… beautiful…. whore… that… pimping bitch… who is trying to have me… that I’ll take another!”
Atobe straightened, turning to look with disgust at his now drunk patron before looking back to Yukimura. “I believe he is talking to you.”
Yukimura laughed at Atobe. "Then try not to bite off too much," he said happily and sank back in his seat. His eyes moved to his bounty. Sloppy.
"He doesn't need another one." Yukimura secured the lid on his flask and slipped it into the holster on his belt. "I dislike that I have to end my visit with you so soon to deal with that, but if you give me fifteen minutes, I'd love to continue to listen and ignore the advice you've been so kind to provide me."
“You could let my security remove him from my bar,” again, Atobe stressed the possessive pronouns. He moved his chair backwards to allow Yukimura to exit, but did not rise himself. Two of his staff were looking in his direction. He lifted a hand to indicate they wait a beat.
Yukimura shook his head. "I prefer to get paid. Also, I doubt your security can handle it as quietly and swiftly as I can." He rose from his seat and flashed one of his weapons briefly. "Maybe they could learn something if they watch closely."
Atobe smiled thinly. “My interest stops at my doors,” he reminded Yukimura. His people were prepared to remove a disorderly customer from the Ice Bar, but beyond the tinted glass facade patrons were in charge of their own luck. His eyes slid to the device attached to Yukimura’s belt, briefly visible as he brushed aside his jacket. It was completely illegal on the Karura. Their eyes met, Atobe’s coldly calculating.
The drunken man lurched from his stool and slammed his glass down on the polished quartz countertop. The contact sounded like a crack. “Where’s… my… drink?” he slurred.
Atobe looked away from Yukimura and towards his staff. With a flick of his fingers he indicated the neat row of bottles shelved behind the bar. It was the signal that more liquor should be brought from the store room. The two waiters hesitated, then turned away. “You’re quite wrong, Yukimura-san,” Atobe told him, rising himself. “No one from my bar saw anything.” He turned to follow his employees.
Yukimura shrugged. The man was getting out of hand and if he didn't act quickly, he would have to deal with blood and he wasn't terribly fond of cleaning up after people.
"Save my seat," Yukimura said jovially and he walked over to the man, wrapping an arm around the drunkard's shoulders and firmly pressed one of his laser weapons into the man's side. "If you cause a scene, I will incapacitate you so fast you will wish I'd have killed you instead."
The man tensed up and let go of the glass. Well, that was likely an extra five-hundred on his already lofty bill. "Good. I'm glad you understand. Shall we?" Yukimura didn't wait for an answer and led the man out of The Ice Bar and towards the hold on his ship.
Atobe allowed the swing door to the Ice Bar’s store room close behind him. He methodically scanned the neat stack of crates as his two waiters wrestled the lid off one on the far side of the room.
One crate…
… two crate …
… three crate …
… four…
He idly counted the supply shelves for a count of 5. Then he returned to the bar. Everything was as it had been moments before, minus two patrons. Atobe lifted the empty glass off the quartz counter, examining the line that split the crystal bottom with distaste. The man deserved his fate.
Yukimura got the man aboard his shuttle and promptly knocked him out before securing him in the hold for all his bounties. "You just had to be difficult when I was having a good time. Enjoy your nap," he said, pulling out the man's ID. He was going to pay for the first drink, at least.
Thankfully, the ship was soundproof, so when the man inevitably woke up, no one would be able to hear him screaming. Yukimura made his way back to the bar and sat right where his target had been. "I don't want what he had, but if you have Narakan wine, I might take a glass," he said, sliding the man's ID over to Atobe. "Empty it. I'll pay the balance."
Atobe placed the damaged glass under the counter to give it a proper funeral later. He plucked the ID card from Yukimura’s fingers and dropped it on the Ice Bar’s payment pad. The man’s name and profession flashed up on the screen but the letters were jumbled like an unrecognised font displaying on an old computer. Atobe lifted an eyebrow. It was the sign of a very poor hack job. The owner was either low in money, or wits. Either way, he had clearly been a very naughty boy.
Atobe tapped the pad to empty the account. It covered the first drink with change. He flipped the card back to Yukimura and reached for a clean glass. The Narakan wine slid down the sparkling surface to pool in the fresh crystal. He set the drink before the bounty hunter, leaning on the bar’s counter. “Do actually drink that. It is far too good to waste.”
Yukimura took back the card and gave Atobe one of his. He slid the target's card back into his jacket. The man would have to have it back when he was delivered. Verification purposes, of course.
"I wouldn't have suggested it if I wasn't planning on at least a sip." Yukimura gracefully picked up the wine glass by the stem and swirled it around. It was a beautiful shade of blood red. He took a drink then sat it back down, a satisfied smile appearing on his lips. "Worth whatever you just charged me."
Atobe dropped Yukimura’s card onto the payment pad. No scramble of letters appeared. In fact, no details of the card owner were visible at all. Atobe gave a thin smile of appreciation; he expected no less. The remainder of the man’s tab went on this ID, along with the wine and three-quarters of the cost of the glass. Atobe supposed at least a fraction of the blame for the tumbler’s demise rested with himself, for providing a potent alternative to the man’s first drink. It hardly mattered; the charges were about principle not cash. They could both afford the cost.
The night was drawing to a close at the Ice Bar. The true clientele of the establishment did not believe in being shunted out the doors at 2 am and were starting to leave of their own accord. Atobe poured himself a glass of Narakan wine and stepped from behind the bar to seat himself next to Yukimura. “I do hope you have returned for the ambiance and not for further business,” he told the bounty hunter. “Additionally, I will wager your recent acquisition cannot handle his drink. His dinner is likely to be regurgitated on your ship.”
Yukimura put his ID back in its place on his person. Given the look on Atobe's face, he'd have to pay the man who created it another visit and offer thanks in the way of another commission.
"Lucky for you, the man I escorted out was the only person here I had to deal with tonight." Same couldn't be said for the other establishments in the area. Yukimura looked at his half-empty glass of wine and shrugged at Atobe's remark. "The weak ones never can. Most of it will end up on himself, so I'm not worried. Besides, that's a loaner shuttle. Mine is getting upgraded on Vinea." He didn't go into further detail. Plausible deniability.
Atobe’s eyes narrowed. Vinea was no where close to the Karura’s current location. Yukimura was either lying, had travelled for a long duration to intercept the Karura or his shuttle moved faster than the legal EAA regulated vessels. Atobe raised his own glass and sipped, massaging the liquid around his mouth before swallowing. The heir to the largest known interstellar corporation recognised essential information to know… and the essential information never to know. He tilted his head in acknowledgement. Plausible deniability.
“I am surprised you risk a rental, when you are so selective about your drink,” he commented. “When do you leave?”
Yukimura could almost hear Atobe's mind working to resolve what he'd just said with what Atobe knew. He took another sip of wine then looked at Atobe.
"It's similar to my ship. Not as fast, but comparable." Yukimura paused at Atobe's question. "If you don't want me to leave, all you have to do is say so," he said with a laugh. "But, the answer is as soon as I finish my wine. Though, once I deliver the goods, I'll be back. No doubt a few people of interest will board while the ship orbits Vespa." Those people were idiots, but at least it made his job easier. "Maybe I'll be nice and bring a bottle of wine from the planet I'm going to next."
Atobe offered him a look capable of peeling paint. The bounty hunter had never responded to implications his work would be better performed away from the Ice Bar, so Atobe strongly doubted the reverse request would be heeded.
“My comment was not one of technical specifications but of safety,” he told Yukimura regarding his shuttle. “You drink from a hip flask before a job, flouting --may I add-- the most basic regulation regarding visiting a bar, yet you happily fly anyone’s tin can through the vacuum of space. Reckless, ahn?”
"I said it was comparable to my actual shuttle," Yukimura said, waving away Atobe's 'concern.'
He couldn't help but roll his eyes. The hip flask was a job requirement. His laser weapons were good for threatening people. "It's not anyone's tin can and I'm not flying it happily. I'll have you know that I inspected the rental inside and out. I wouldn't have flown it if I thought it would kill me," Yukimura said. The sooner he got his shuttle back, the better. "Being reckless is in the job description."
Atobe shrugged, finishing his wine. “I am not your mother.” He slid the glass back onto the counter, stretching out his legs before standing and looking down at his occasional patron, occasional freeloader. “But everyone has their match, Yukimura Seiichi. Even you.” He walked to the end of the counter, stepping behind the bar once again.
"That's a good thing. I wouldn't look nearly as good if you were," Yukimura said. "If Death himself couldn't take me, no one can."
He nudged his glass of wine towards Atobe, stood up, and zipped up his flight jacket. "I'd love to stay, but I have a delivery to make. Maybe next time I'll actually finish a drink you give me." Yukimura started for the exit. "I'll see you next time, Atobe. Don't work too late, you'll get wrinkles."
Atobe watched as the only person possibly more arrogant than himself left the bar. With an expression mingled with irritation and dry amusement, he tipped the remaining wine into his own glass and sipped, watching the room as the Ice Bar concluded business for the night.
What: A meeting between frenemies
Where: The Ice Bar
When: shortly after Yukimura returns to the Karura
Warnings/Notes: The snark is real, folks.
Yukimura waved off one of Atobe's lackeys and made his way to the back of the bar to find his usual seat in the more private area blissfully empty. The spot was a voyeur's heaven. One could see everything if they looked hard and long enough. In his position, body language spoke loads more than lip reading could.
Besides, if intel was correct, his latest bounty was right there at the bar, nervously sipping on some neon liquid. Amateur. Smarter fugitives would try to hide in plain sight at seedier establishments, not high-end, spend-an-entire-paycheck-on-one-drink places like the Ice Bar. Well, whatever. Not his problem.
When it came to watching his targets, Yukimura was as subtle as the black-on-black design that formed the etched series of interlocking vine leaves along the marble bar. That did not stop Atobe noticing him the second he walked through the door. As with all threats to his business, he had been expected.
With deliberate care, Atobe picked up a crystal tumbler and polished its rim to a perfect shine. To most of the bar’s patrons, the young scion looked relaxed; his care in the glassware seemingly that of the perfectionists’ touch that attracted the Ice Bar’s clientele. To those more attuned to the man, he looked beyond irritated.
Yukimura looked away from his target to settle on Atobe. Not yet a target, but someone to keep an eye on nonetheless. He grinned widely and waved at the owner who appeared slightly, almost imperceptibly off. Unfortunately, the waving brought over another waiter. He rolled his eyes.
"Another drink for the man at the bar. Tell him it's from one of the ladies, but don't point out anyone. Oh, and tell Atobe I said 'hi,'" Yukimura said, waiting until the man walked away to pull out his hip flask.
Atobe did not look up from performing his tumbler pedicure when one of his waiters approached him with a slight cough.
“Atobe-sama, the gentleman in the corner… He says…” the man appeared flustered at the prospect of transmitting such a casual message to his illustrious employer.
Atobe dismissed him with a wave of his hand. “I can imagine.” His eyes rose from the glass slightly to look at a distant point on the perfectly swept floor. “Who is he buying a drink for?”
His waiter hesitated in surprise, internally wondering if the rumors were true about his boss’s extrasensory abilities. “He… um, the gentleman customer drinking the sunrise martini.”
Ex-customer, Atobe thought dryly. “Change it to a ‘paradise and perdition’,” he informed his waiter. “I am sure the gentleman will not protest. It costs significantly more.” He glanced sideways at his staff. “Bill accordingly.”
The waiter gulped his acknowledgment and scuttled away as Atobe examined the glass he had been cleaning critically in the lantern light. The crystal split the beam into a rainbow of colours. Charming. He walked over to the shelves of curving glass bottles and poured a shot from one into the glass, adding the customary olive. Then he stepped from behind the bar, his eyes diverted from the sunrise cocktail drinker as he walked to the shadowed corner where his least favorite patron sat.
“Most would consider a drink a minimal requirement for sitting in a bar,” he informed Yukimura as he placed the crystal on the table in front of him.
Yukimura's smile grew wider as he watched the waiter stumble over his words talking to Atobe. The owner wasn't that intimidating. Though, maybe the waiter was just afraid of anyone in a position of power. That smile turned into a full-out grin when Atobe left the bar and started walking towards him.
"Well, it's a good thing I have one," Yukimura said, holding up his flask. "And I already know you changed the order to something more expensive, but you don't need to worry. I have more than enough money to pay for your overpriced beverages."
“A drink purchased from the bar,” Atobe clarified in an overly patient tone. “The rules are the same as for a cinema, Yukimura, no outside food or drink. If it assists your memory to compare to a more common establishment.”
Reluctantly, he pulled out the chair opposite the slender young man and sat. Behind him, a sound of a hacking cough came from the bar. Yukimura’s evening prey had just tasted his new beverage and found it far stronger than his previous choice. Atobe’s selection was not only more costly, but designed to bring an inebriated numbness to the senses. It was a gift Atobe selected both for the man’s final hours and the continued pristine condition of his establishment. “The condition of your credit will no doubt delight my customer,” --there was gentle stress on the possessive pronoun-- “who I am sure will be thrilled to meet his demise solvent.”
"People sneak food and drink into movies all the time," Yukimura said with a shrug. "And nothing in that rule says that drink has to be mine. Technically, I did purchase a drink from the bar."
Yukimura's eyes narrowed as the man coughed. He didn't need Atobe's help in weakening his targets. "I don't kill," he said sharply. The last thing he wanted was to drag dead weight through a spaceship. He was strong, but there were limits. "Don't step on my toes and I won't cause destructive scenes in your bar."
It was a thinly veiled warning not to get in his way unless Atobe wanted to be the one to meet an early demise.
Atobe decided to drink the vodka he had brought Yukimura. It was a fine blend from the Vega system. He took a sip, holding the liquor in his mouth to appreciate its smoothness. The fingers that held the crystal tumbler flicked dismissively at Yukimura’s words. “A rose by any other name...,” he quoted, coolly. Yukimura might take his victims alive, but Atobe highly doubted whether they all continued to enjoy the benefits of breathing after delivery. They never returned to the Ice Bar. “You would do even less damage if you took your scenes to a different location.”
"Wouldn't smell as sweet," Yukimura finished. The quote also served as a reminder to check on the gardens before he grabbed his bounty and left the Karura.
"Be more discerning in your clientele then. I'm not the one that tells them to blow all their money on cocktails and fancy meals. Then again, if they all sat at the canteen, it wouldn't be nearly as fun. I'd miss multiple prime opportunities to come annoy you in your place of business." Yukimura laughed slightly and took another drink from his flask. "
“I would be beset by customers actually drinking the beverages they order,” Atobe responded dryly. He lifted the half-full glass so its clear liquid hung between them. “Do you truly fear I would poison you, Seiichi?”
Yukimura was annoyed at Atobe's use of his first name, but didn't let it show at all. No reason to give the man the upper hand. "Not at all, Keigo, but I'm quite fickle and particular. You can't make what I like." Yukimura leaned towards Atobe and smiled. "Do you fear that one of these days I'll be ordering a drink for you?"
The slate grey eyes didn’t flinch as they met that violet stare. “First rule of being a successful businessman,” Atobe told him, his tone not loud enough to drift beyond their table. “Never bite off more than you can chew.”
Behind them and one potent cocktail down, Yukimura’s target was waving his empty glass at a waiter. “Tell that… that… beautiful…. whore… that… pimping bitch… who is trying to have me… that I’ll take another!”
Atobe straightened, turning to look with disgust at his now drunk patron before looking back to Yukimura. “I believe he is talking to you.”
Yukimura laughed at Atobe. "Then try not to bite off too much," he said happily and sank back in his seat. His eyes moved to his bounty. Sloppy.
"He doesn't need another one." Yukimura secured the lid on his flask and slipped it into the holster on his belt. "I dislike that I have to end my visit with you so soon to deal with that, but if you give me fifteen minutes, I'd love to continue to listen and ignore the advice you've been so kind to provide me."
“You could let my security remove him from my bar,” again, Atobe stressed the possessive pronouns. He moved his chair backwards to allow Yukimura to exit, but did not rise himself. Two of his staff were looking in his direction. He lifted a hand to indicate they wait a beat.
Yukimura shook his head. "I prefer to get paid. Also, I doubt your security can handle it as quietly and swiftly as I can." He rose from his seat and flashed one of his weapons briefly. "Maybe they could learn something if they watch closely."
Atobe smiled thinly. “My interest stops at my doors,” he reminded Yukimura. His people were prepared to remove a disorderly customer from the Ice Bar, but beyond the tinted glass facade patrons were in charge of their own luck. His eyes slid to the device attached to Yukimura’s belt, briefly visible as he brushed aside his jacket. It was completely illegal on the Karura. Their eyes met, Atobe’s coldly calculating.
The drunken man lurched from his stool and slammed his glass down on the polished quartz countertop. The contact sounded like a crack. “Where’s… my… drink?” he slurred.
Atobe looked away from Yukimura and towards his staff. With a flick of his fingers he indicated the neat row of bottles shelved behind the bar. It was the signal that more liquor should be brought from the store room. The two waiters hesitated, then turned away. “You’re quite wrong, Yukimura-san,” Atobe told him, rising himself. “No one from my bar saw anything.” He turned to follow his employees.
Yukimura shrugged. The man was getting out of hand and if he didn't act quickly, he would have to deal with blood and he wasn't terribly fond of cleaning up after people.
"Save my seat," Yukimura said jovially and he walked over to the man, wrapping an arm around the drunkard's shoulders and firmly pressed one of his laser weapons into the man's side. "If you cause a scene, I will incapacitate you so fast you will wish I'd have killed you instead."
The man tensed up and let go of the glass. Well, that was likely an extra five-hundred on his already lofty bill. "Good. I'm glad you understand. Shall we?" Yukimura didn't wait for an answer and led the man out of The Ice Bar and towards the hold on his ship.
Atobe allowed the swing door to the Ice Bar’s store room close behind him. He methodically scanned the neat stack of crates as his two waiters wrestled the lid off one on the far side of the room.
One crate…
… two crate …
… three crate …
… four…
He idly counted the supply shelves for a count of 5. Then he returned to the bar. Everything was as it had been moments before, minus two patrons. Atobe lifted the empty glass off the quartz counter, examining the line that split the crystal bottom with distaste. The man deserved his fate.
Yukimura got the man aboard his shuttle and promptly knocked him out before securing him in the hold for all his bounties. "You just had to be difficult when I was having a good time. Enjoy your nap," he said, pulling out the man's ID. He was going to pay for the first drink, at least.
Thankfully, the ship was soundproof, so when the man inevitably woke up, no one would be able to hear him screaming. Yukimura made his way back to the bar and sat right where his target had been. "I don't want what he had, but if you have Narakan wine, I might take a glass," he said, sliding the man's ID over to Atobe. "Empty it. I'll pay the balance."
Atobe placed the damaged glass under the counter to give it a proper funeral later. He plucked the ID card from Yukimura’s fingers and dropped it on the Ice Bar’s payment pad. The man’s name and profession flashed up on the screen but the letters were jumbled like an unrecognised font displaying on an old computer. Atobe lifted an eyebrow. It was the sign of a very poor hack job. The owner was either low in money, or wits. Either way, he had clearly been a very naughty boy.
Atobe tapped the pad to empty the account. It covered the first drink with change. He flipped the card back to Yukimura and reached for a clean glass. The Narakan wine slid down the sparkling surface to pool in the fresh crystal. He set the drink before the bounty hunter, leaning on the bar’s counter. “Do actually drink that. It is far too good to waste.”
Yukimura took back the card and gave Atobe one of his. He slid the target's card back into his jacket. The man would have to have it back when he was delivered. Verification purposes, of course.
"I wouldn't have suggested it if I wasn't planning on at least a sip." Yukimura gracefully picked up the wine glass by the stem and swirled it around. It was a beautiful shade of blood red. He took a drink then sat it back down, a satisfied smile appearing on his lips. "Worth whatever you just charged me."
Atobe dropped Yukimura’s card onto the payment pad. No scramble of letters appeared. In fact, no details of the card owner were visible at all. Atobe gave a thin smile of appreciation; he expected no less. The remainder of the man’s tab went on this ID, along with the wine and three-quarters of the cost of the glass. Atobe supposed at least a fraction of the blame for the tumbler’s demise rested with himself, for providing a potent alternative to the man’s first drink. It hardly mattered; the charges were about principle not cash. They could both afford the cost.
The night was drawing to a close at the Ice Bar. The true clientele of the establishment did not believe in being shunted out the doors at 2 am and were starting to leave of their own accord. Atobe poured himself a glass of Narakan wine and stepped from behind the bar to seat himself next to Yukimura. “I do hope you have returned for the ambiance and not for further business,” he told the bounty hunter. “Additionally, I will wager your recent acquisition cannot handle his drink. His dinner is likely to be regurgitated on your ship.”
Yukimura put his ID back in its place on his person. Given the look on Atobe's face, he'd have to pay the man who created it another visit and offer thanks in the way of another commission.
"Lucky for you, the man I escorted out was the only person here I had to deal with tonight." Same couldn't be said for the other establishments in the area. Yukimura looked at his half-empty glass of wine and shrugged at Atobe's remark. "The weak ones never can. Most of it will end up on himself, so I'm not worried. Besides, that's a loaner shuttle. Mine is getting upgraded on Vinea." He didn't go into further detail. Plausible deniability.
Atobe’s eyes narrowed. Vinea was no where close to the Karura’s current location. Yukimura was either lying, had travelled for a long duration to intercept the Karura or his shuttle moved faster than the legal EAA regulated vessels. Atobe raised his own glass and sipped, massaging the liquid around his mouth before swallowing. The heir to the largest known interstellar corporation recognised essential information to know… and the essential information never to know. He tilted his head in acknowledgement. Plausible deniability.
“I am surprised you risk a rental, when you are so selective about your drink,” he commented. “When do you leave?”
Yukimura could almost hear Atobe's mind working to resolve what he'd just said with what Atobe knew. He took another sip of wine then looked at Atobe.
"It's similar to my ship. Not as fast, but comparable." Yukimura paused at Atobe's question. "If you don't want me to leave, all you have to do is say so," he said with a laugh. "But, the answer is as soon as I finish my wine. Though, once I deliver the goods, I'll be back. No doubt a few people of interest will board while the ship orbits Vespa." Those people were idiots, but at least it made his job easier. "Maybe I'll be nice and bring a bottle of wine from the planet I'm going to next."
Atobe offered him a look capable of peeling paint. The bounty hunter had never responded to implications his work would be better performed away from the Ice Bar, so Atobe strongly doubted the reverse request would be heeded.
“My comment was not one of technical specifications but of safety,” he told Yukimura regarding his shuttle. “You drink from a hip flask before a job, flouting --may I add-- the most basic regulation regarding visiting a bar, yet you happily fly anyone’s tin can through the vacuum of space. Reckless, ahn?”
"I said it was comparable to my actual shuttle," Yukimura said, waving away Atobe's 'concern.'
He couldn't help but roll his eyes. The hip flask was a job requirement. His laser weapons were good for threatening people. "It's not anyone's tin can and I'm not flying it happily. I'll have you know that I inspected the rental inside and out. I wouldn't have flown it if I thought it would kill me," Yukimura said. The sooner he got his shuttle back, the better. "Being reckless is in the job description."
Atobe shrugged, finishing his wine. “I am not your mother.” He slid the glass back onto the counter, stretching out his legs before standing and looking down at his occasional patron, occasional freeloader. “But everyone has their match, Yukimura Seiichi. Even you.” He walked to the end of the counter, stepping behind the bar once again.
"That's a good thing. I wouldn't look nearly as good if you were," Yukimura said. "If Death himself couldn't take me, no one can."
He nudged his glass of wine towards Atobe, stood up, and zipped up his flight jacket. "I'd love to stay, but I have a delivery to make. Maybe next time I'll actually finish a drink you give me." Yukimura started for the exit. "I'll see you next time, Atobe. Don't work too late, you'll get wrinkles."
Atobe watched as the only person possibly more arrogant than himself left the bar. With an expression mingled with irritation and dry amusement, he tipped the remaining wine into his own glass and sipped, watching the room as the Ice Bar concluded business for the night.