Move Over, Eros!! [Valentines Day Event]

[Kazuki Akimoto]

Holidays often garnered attention in clubs and bars throughout the metropolitan areas of any major city: events would be staged, special parties thrown, generally a night was made of it for both owners and customers alike.

Legion was certainly no exception to this trend, and despite a quiet festive period where little was done aside from a low-key party for the staff and a few other guests, Taiku had pulled all the stops to make tonight one hell of an event. The club was sparsely decorated for the night, but that was not unusual. Decorations always appeared 'tacky' to him, and it detracted from the mood he aimed for Legion to have in any case. Instead, the lighting had been slightly dimmed and focused on a softer look, and the tables were framed with candles. Nothing more, nothing less, a simple touch to add a suitable atmosphere to the building, not that the entertainment for the night would follow such a pattern of course...

Already, the floor was filling quickly as couples and singles alike began to swarm in, taking tables and spots at the bar as if they were going out of fashion, and Taiku watched quietly from a small table to the side with a curt smile on his face. He was looking forward to tonight, there was no doubt about it, and the stage was calling him. For now, however, he sat calmly and sipped at the small glass of rum in front of him. There was still a few minutes before he'd begin the first of the nights...activities. In the meanwhile, an up-and-coming band played some of their songs to the crowd, good kids with some real talent he'd found playing open mic nights at a club on the other side of San Francisco. The customers seemed to like them as well, and a small number had begun to congregate near the stage, listening quite avidly to the young band as they played a short set.

"Looks like it's going to be a busy one, huh..?"

Glancing up, he smiled at the blonde who'd stopped beside his table, looking down to him with her own, fleeting smile. Pushing a chair out with his leg, she sat down as he replied.

"Certainly looks that way, Rene, and it's only just beginning."

"You really revel in this, don't you?"

Glancing up as the band finished their last song for the moment, getting a quick nod from the singer as he backed away from the mic and thanked the crowd, Taiku rose from his seat. Shooting back a last small mouthful of the rum, he grinned to Rene.

“Guess I was just made for this business.”

Smiling as he stood at the side of the stage, waiting for the lingering applause to all but end before stepping up, he walked into the positioned spotlight and stood before the mic and the crowd, speaking with a vigour in his voice to the crowds that filled the club; his club.

“Welcome to Legion’s Valentines day event! I assure you, this will not be your standard February 14th, and anyone who came here looking for love songs and hearts? You’re gonna be disappointed.”

The grin on his face was accented by a mild ripple of laughter from a few tables as the distinguished-looking Asian slowly walked across the length of the stage, lapping up the crowd with a suitably placed smirk. Damn, he loved this job.

“As such, we’re going to do something a little bit new and interesting tonight. First of all, I must tell you that every cent made tonight is going to be donated to the National Cancer Institute USA. Every nickel and dime in the cash registers tonight is going, all the ticket proceeds, everything. So, with that said, let’s start having some fun!!”

Grinning a little wider, he sipped the glass in his hand before continuing…

“You’ll all notice that you were handed a pair of numbered tickets when you walked through the doors tonight, I certainly hope you kept hold of them, because we’re going to have a little ‘raffle’. However, since I, ahem, ‘forgot’ to arrange prizes, I’m going to just pick a few now. Starting with…..”

His arm rising, outstretched toward the crowd, he settled on a girl in the front-row of the crowd, the light that had lingered over him breaking into a second beam and settling on her.

“You. Come up on here!”

Smirking, as the general idea began to settle on the crowd to a few whispers and giggles, he began to issue the same gesture to others in the crowd, a mixture of male and female, pointing at them and ushering them to join them on the stage, a few of them faces he recognized quite well and a few others he didn’t, hoping on both counts, admittedly, that they’d play along in the spirit of things. After a moment or two, the ten stood on the stage, split into their respective genders on either side of him.

“Ladies, gentlemen….I give you the prizes for Legions first annual human raffle!! In a little while, you’ll have the chance to win a paid evening with one of the ten standing before you, but for now, let’s get the music back on!”

On cue, speakers began to play music again throughout the building as Taiku turned to the group, nodding and introducing himself to the few he didn’t know personally, smirking slightly at the ones he did.

“Bet none of you saw this coming, huh…?”

[Aden Allett]

Aden made his way through a few bars, not many allowing him to drink, due to his particular age, while a few didn’t seem to notice for a short amount of time. Wasn’t it against some sort of rule to wait for the first drink before asking for the age verification? The day was nothing, but disappointment. Aden was stuck with nothing to do, kicked out of his house so his uncle could get “lucky,” as he put it, and left with no girl to suit his particular needs, especially on today of all days.

Aden wasn’t one to particularly care about the symbolism of today. The fact usually being that him having a partner never seemed to matter. He wasn’t that he wasn’t attracted to people; he just never felt it necessary to try to pick one up. The trouble of buying them things everyday, being with them all the time, and then buying them twice the amount on holidays, maybe three times the amount on this particular one, never seemed rather appealing.

Aden made his way to the legion, where, upon entering, was offered a ticket for a set amount. They explained that there would be a prize, not seeming to explain what it was. Aden, walked over, past loving couple sand the like, towards the bar, where he sat on a stool, looking over the ticket. Aden asked for water, from the bartender. Rather then dulling his senses, he wanted to see what the prize would be.

Sure enough, his ears perked and his head turned towards the stage as the owner of the bar, took the microphone, to gain everyone’s attention. He explained how the raffle would work and where the money was headed and what the prize would be, or rather, what he was just about to pull out of his ass would be. This is what happens when you forget the prize. Those were Aden’s thoughts, but at the same time, he felt a little intrigued with the idea of handing off people on valentines. The man knew how to save himself on stage.

Aden noticed as the man randomly picked multiple participants to come be prizes, but the raffle, would decide who was going home with a prize, and who they would be getting if they did. A regular straight fellow could end up with a regular straight man and that only made Aden smile. The idea was absolutely hilarious and someone deserved a plaque for coming up with this.

[Pain Killer]

"I can't believe you made me come to this farce."

"Hey, don't be like that! It's for a good cause."

The two Rydells were seated near the middle of the tables, surrounded by the sea of people who had shown up for the fundraising event, much to Adam's chagrin. Of course, Mya had wanted to be in the middle of the action, and in a surprising show of strength, had muscled her way through the crowd, likely assisted in no small part by the fact she was pulling her monster of a brother behind her. As protective as he was, Pain Killer sat close to his sister, glaring at any and all males who he could assume was looking at her.

Once the owner of Legion started to give his speech, Adam snorted to himself, earning a small nudge from his sister for being rude. To the younger Rydell, Taiku tended to talk too much, and there was far too much cheer and good fun for his taste in the atmosphere. At the mention of the tickets, Pain Killer could only smirk in a moment of minor victory, as the moment he'd walked into the club, he'd crumpled the thing into a ball and dropped it on the ground, while Mya had held onto hers with excitement.

Sorry, no fun for you at my expense tonight, Taiku.

Yet, it seemed that not everything was going according to the youngest Rydell's plan, for moments later, Taiku pointed towards him, causing a simple reaction from Pain Killer, who leaned back in his chair.

"No."

Even with his stubborn streak, Pain Killer was no match for the fury of his older sister, who kicked the back leg of his chair, forcing him to stand in order to prevent himself from falling. Shocked, Adam looked down at the purple haired girl, and seeing the anger in her face, resigned himself to having to play along. He knew full well the sorts of grudges his sister could hold, as well as her tendancy to be just as stubborn, if not moreso, than him. With his reasoning set, the self-proclaimed Pain Killer made his way onto the stage, making sure to stop long enough for Taiku to make out the words he spoke before going to stand at the end of the rest of the "prizes", making sure to keep a small distance between himself and them.

"I hate you. I hate you so much right now."

[Valencia Donahue]

Ruth and Gladys decided to spend their Valentines Day evening doing something fun, so they asked Valencia if she knew any places that’d be a great location to celebrate Singles Awareness Day as well. She wasn’t really in the mood to dwell too much upon it, so she simply uttered the first accessible location off the top of her head (with the first two locations being inaccessible, like Paris and Milwaukee). Being the ever-so-impressionable lesbians they were, they settled on Valencia’s quick decision and off they went to the Legion. Like any other establishment, the place was busy with couples spending their time together and singles trying to cope with them. The three received raffle tickets at the door and on their way toward their respective seats, they wondered what the prize was going to be…

“Trip to Disneyland.”

[GLADYS]: “Flowers, box of chocolates, a balloon, and bear that screams ‘happy things’ when you squeeze it. At least, for the girls.”

[RUTH]: “For the guys, maybe cologne and another bear that screams ‘happy things’ should they feel like squeezing it. I have no idea what’d guys really like anyways…”

[GLADYS]: “Y’know, when we get home, we should go to bed together and scream ‘happy thi—’”

Before Valencia’s palm could connect with her face, Taiku spoke up and got the ball rolling. The three had to admit, sponsoring for the National Cancer Institute looks good on any place’s track record, but what really got their attention was the talk about prizes or lack thereof. In a way, the three were itching for free stuff and it didn’t matter if it was something they didn’t want. Unbeknownst to them, as soon as Valencia was beckoned onstage, some participation was required… She gave a slight pleading look towards her friends and they rooted her on with encouraging yells, with helped her attitude a li’l. Once Valencia was onstage, it was pretty obvious which table she came from…

[RUTH]: “GET US A BEAR THAT SCREAMS ‘HAPPY THINGS’!!”

[GLADYS]: “WE’LL LET YOU KEEP IT IF YOU ONLY GET ONE!!”

If it weren’t for the hubbub, people in the front row probably would’ve heard Valencia’s mildly embarrassed comments behind the hand concealing her face. Comments like…

“Disneyland… Disneyland… Disneyland… Please not the screaming bear…”

[mic]

Valentine's day. Yup, the same old Valentine's day from every year. Nothing much changed every year. People found new lovers, people received gifts and people got their chocolate stolen from Mickey. Yup, nothing changed one bit. Well, at least nothing changed that morning at school. Once school was over and such, parties or dates would begin. Nothing special really, but enough to keep most human beings quite preoccupied. Well, as much as this girl would of so love her solitude, she wanted to go out and maybe have fun? Was the fun of most people the same fun for her? Maybe. But she would have to be there and find out really. So off she went to find a good party or something somewhere.

San Fransisco was a large place, and finding good places was never very hard. In fact, as she walked down the streets, alone as usual, she found a huge crowd of people getting in this one place. A club? Possibly, most likely.

Mickey observed it, debating on whether or not she should enter it and check it out or not. Well, curiosity seemed to have taken the best of her as she soon began to walk towards it, entering it. There were many people there, and the place seemed to have a type of calm romantic aura? God knows. Not like she knew anyway. Romantic or loving things or even erotic things were not something that the young sophomore knew very well. She had never experienced such a thing after all.
Mickey Campbell found herself a nice little spot to just stand around and listen to the music. Dance? Probably not. She would have probably if she was with someone there. But since she was sort of a loner for a little while(until she maybe met someone to hang out with), she decided to keep to herself. If she would be alone too long though, she would probably leave. No one liked to be in a place like this alone after all. Plus, even this girl loved to have fun every once in a while. She was just too...shy? No, well umm... not comfortable with dancing alone out of no where.
The music was good though, Mickey bobbing her head slightly to it, enjoying the tune. Once they were though, an Asian man made his way to the stage and began to talk about how he would give all the money earned tonight to some cancer institute...thingy. It was generous, that was for sure and it was for a good cause. This certainly impressed the strange girl as she observed his with her light blue eyes.

And finally, this raffle thing. Yes, Mickey did have a ticket from when she entered and she kept it with her. She hoped to collect them all when the raffle was over. It would be a great new hobby.
She knew very well she wouldn't win whatever this prize was, but at least she would have all the tickets when people began to throw them out. Well, her plans seemed to change quite quickly. A human raffle? The hell? It was at this point that people began to be pointed at from the stage, people urging them upon the stage. But what shocked her most was when she was chosen. Was he out of his mind? Her? A prize? Most people found her strange and completely ignored her. Ah well, it could be fun, and maybe she wouldn't make a total fool of herself like she was convinced she would do.
The people in the crowd began to yell random things, encouraging her(like they did to everyone else) to go on stage with the other prizes.
"Ah poo." she whispered under her breath as she began to walk up the stage, standing next to other girls who were also prizes.

[Conner]

It had been a few minutes paused, as Conner continued to stare down his index finger that was pointed at weasel boy just a few inches to his right. Mae-Lim wasn't around, which was probably why her personal whipping boy once again flocked to the nearby Horseman. Conner had stopped midsentence, pausing as he lost his place. Realizing it wouldn't come back to him he slammed his scotch back on the table, the one he had gotten from his fake ID. To the waitress he wasn't Conner McGrath, not tonight. He was Roberto Parchesi. It must have been the blonde hair that made her believe he was italian.

"You know, Valentine's Day is just another reason to drink your ass off, just so you can lower your standards for a night, making all the women look hotter all in hopes you'll hook up so you won't be alone for a night out of the year, maybe take a hop in the back ally, lean her against the dumpster for an oh-so-romantic fuc-"

Conner paused again, turning his head now to the stage where some guy had rudely interrupted his explanation of love. At the mention of charity, Conner grinned again, waving the waitress back over. He ordered two more drinks, claiming he was in the process of curing cancer. In the process of downing his new drinks, Conner hadn't been paying attention when Taiku had pointed directly at him. Weasel boy had to nudge him, causing Conner to put down his drink and glare at the kid, almost decking him for interrupting. At weasel boy's nervous ramblings and pointing finger however, Conner looked to the stage and grinned, slamming his glass down and standing up far too quickly.

As he got on stage Conner grinned wildly, wincing a moment as the stagelights hurt his eyes. He continued to look around like a puppy at the pound, noticing the larger man at his side. A feat in itself, this one even went so far to wear Conner's angry face, though Conner began to think this was the man's usual face. Conner stared at him a long moment, narrowing his eyes until Pain Killer would notice him. When Pain Killer would look at him or Conner became bored, whichever came first, he would speak up.

"Ha! You might be less of a prize than me!"

[Victoria Alexander]

((ooc- National Cancer Institute USA, Nice touch Liam))

Valentines day. The big companies like Hallmark, Gorants Candies, all those big wigs were rubbing their hands together knowing their revenues where going to go up. Victoria was never one for Valentines day. The 14th of February just consisted of a tub of ice cream, a tv (if possible) and warm pajamas.

Course tonight was a different story. She had rushed during her work day with Bob and Sally. They knew she had plans. They seemed to be all up for her having a little fun. She couldn’t figure out why she agreed to do what they said but they had a way of making her feel guilty she was alone in the city. ‘Go have fun, meet new people.’ They would say as they ushered her downstairs to get ready.

“A bar of all places. Sally you could have thought of something a little better.” She shook her head. She didn’t know what to wear. She had the jean skirt, the simple blouse. They should work, she thought to herself as she went on the search for them.

Hearing a knock on the upstairs door she called for the person to come in. With the dainty sounds of steps on the stairs it was in no doubt Sally. Bob had a knack of sounding like a heard of elephant on the stairs. It was quite a difference. Without turning towards the steps she continued to ruffle through some clothing.

“Sally I know you guys want me to mingle but I have nothing to wear. I mean the skirt and the blouse you gave me should work but I can’t seem to find them.”

“Well there hunny why don’t you turn around and come see what I got you.”

Victoria turned her eyes seemed to go wide with surprise. Sally was holding a dress on a hanger and a pair of heels in the other.

“O Sally that would be perfect.” She sounded almost excited now. Rushing up to her she hugged her, lifting the small women off her feet and whirled her around.

-To the Raffle-

Victoria almost felt different when she arrived at the place Sally had suggested. She said it was all the rage with young people like me. She wasn’t kidding. The place had a nice vibe. It seemed almost familiar but she shook the thought free from her head. Smoothing down the red cocktail dress. She felt so feminine. The deep red color covered her body, small accents of rinestones let the light bounce off just slightly.

She seemed to sparkle. Her hair done up with slight strands cascading down hitting her neck line and shoulders like a gentle touch. Her dark makeup accenting the cool blue eyes that peered over the room. The room was nearly full, all either standing or sitting focusing on the stage as a life band filled the room with sounds.

Moving to the bar, she felt more comfortable there than a table. She didn’t want to take up any chairs just in case a group wanted to vacate the spot. Sitting down and crossing one leg over the other she looked down at the raffle tickets in her hand questionably. I wonder what these are for? She thought to herself as she looked up at the bartender that was patiently waiting for her order.

“Ah, yes, may I just have a coke please.”

With a nod the bartender would fill a glass with the dark pop, sliding it slighting towards her. With a thank you and a couple bills from the matching purse she had she turned and scanned the people in the room, nodding slightly to the music that was actually pretty good.

The band seemed to finish their set as the crowd would clap and cheer. She waited for the next song but they seemed to clear the stage as a man went up towards the mic. As the spotlight hit his face. Victoria could have almost spit her pop across the room. Restraining her self as well as the quicken pace of her heart. She could have almost slapped herself for not realizing this before.

She knew the bar’s name Legion, that word sounding so familiar but didn’t connect it to Taiku. Shaking her head as he greeted everyone. She couldn’t help but smile. He always had a certain way about him that made him every ones best friend. His way with people and his way with her made her fall hard for him. She missed him but in the end it was over and probably best for him.

Sighing slightly she felt lucky to have known he was in town but foolish that of all nights she would run into him. Fate liked to point and laugh at her as though saying ‘Nah nah you can’t have him.’ But she seemed overall to be taking it quite well, after all it has been two years.

Watching him she listened to the sound of his voice moving through her ears, the words he said about the donation. It struck her heart cord as her hand rested on her chest. Could he really do that, she thought to herself. Of course he can, he was always a giving person and for him to do this, was unbelievable.

She herself had a bad experience with cancer. It cost her a lot more that chemo and a surgical team of doctors could not fix. The thought pained her as she turned her eyes on the floor. But after sucking in a deep breath she let it go and decided that even if she had to fight the crowd she had to have a word with Taiku.

Letting her determination feed her away from her depression, it led her to actually applaud and clap as the human raffle seemed to begin. She was not going to be the Victoria that pained on the past and was a stick in the mud, tonight she was going to have fun even if she forced herself or at least if one of the raffle tickets happen to be a winner.


(ooc - Ofcourse I would draw a picture for the season )
xinrpb1.proboards99.com/index.cgi?board=art&action=display&thread=1126&page=1#22690

[Alkaiser]

Steve Barzahd wasn't much of a romantic, but man-whore and flirt weren't too far from the truth. On a night like that of February 14th, he couldn't help but go out and party, because he knew that he could get some kicks out of the festivities of Valentine's day.

This trolling eventually lands the young redhead in Club Legion, the bar owned by Varron grad Taiku Akimoto. It was a really nice place, but one that Alkaiser didn't frequent for the fact that he was severely underage. Still, tonite he was allowed to have just as much fun as anyone else, because the doors were open for some sort of an event. He strolls in, talks with some people, and generally has a good time.

Just then, a finger is pointed in his face. It was connected to the club owner himself, holding a microphone and speaking of a people-raffle. Alkaiser, seemingly unlike the rest of the participants, hops to his feet and flaunts a little on his way up to the stage, where he stands next to a pair of semi-familiar faces.

Still a tad confused, Steve smiles around and looks at all of the ladies that could win a great night with him, but neglects to understand the full extent of the rules empoyed in this competition...

[Aryn Valcoph]

. o O ( ...I assume that the drinking and gambling ages (for the sake of simplicity) are the same; eighteen years of age. )

The world seemed fresh and new to an eighteen year old that had finally been unleashed upon the city. While others had gone on and on about Valentine's day being a ''couples' day'' or - as it's been put - ''Singles Awareness Day'' or even a day to find someone to get laid with, Aryn simply celebrated it for celebrating it. As soon as she'd been released from Hircine High, she'd gone straight to her dorm room to shower and change...and then promptly hopped a bus to high-tail it to one of the casinos on the other side of the Golden Gate Bridge.

Membership card tucked into her handbag, she ambled around the lower level of the casino for a while before deciding to try her hand on the roulette tables. Good and bad luck came and went, but it wasn't long before Aryn decided to quit, walking away with a handful of chips to be cashed. It was something she found she enjoyed, but knew the money could just as quickly disappear if she didn't take a step back from the tables. A couple drinks, a light meal, and couple of conversations later and she was back out the door. Her destination? Club Legion.

It wasn't until a few hours later that the fun actually started, when the owner of the bar actually stood up and made his presence known - loud and clear - by announcing that the raffle that was to be held wasn't any ordinary raffle, but a human raffle.

''Hot damn.'' She grinned, watching as the first few 'prizes' were picked out of the crowd. Though, of course, that wasn't all: Taiku Akimoto was...well, as good-looking as the day he'd first started his teaching at Hircine High. Her two tickets were tucked safely into her pockets, and her attention was focused whole-heartedly upon the goings on up ahead. She was somewhere in the middle of the crowd, and could only give a loud wolf whistle as a familiar fellow student was called up to the stage: Conner.

''How about you! ...uh, no, over one more, Jake. No, back to the left, the one in the bright pink top...there we go!''

When the beam of light fell on her, she could only grin and swallow the last mouthful or so of her drink before weaving her way through the crowd, amongst the few cheers that went up in encouragement...though the young female needed none. Her hair was down and straight for the night, soft and shiny as it were... And her clothes were simple, not too flashy: a pair of black pants with red pinstripes that were tight around her hips but baggy below, and a form-fitting, hot pink halter top.

Breaking free of the crowd and heading onto the stage, sending a cheeky little grin Valencia's way, she suddenly turned her attention to Conner, and her grin became purely mischievous. Her ballerina flats making a few quick slaps against the stage's surface, Aryn sprinted those few steps towards Conner before launching herself at the six-foot-ish student (hoping feverously that he wouldn't think to evade--and that he'd recognize her from the whole gym riot), hands rising to his shoulders to help the slight leap, arms just wrapping around his shoulders in an embrace-like gesture before she managed to wrap her legs 'round his waist. Hooking her feet together, she twisted slightly so she could get a better look at the cheering crowd, raising her fist in the air in a triumphant gesture.

''Get him while you can, ladies'n'gents! You never know who might jump on him next!''

Not the least bit put-off by her own shameless, teasing display, Aryn found herself leaning lightly on his shoulders, devious grin still in place. 'Heh, it could very well be me?' Tilting her head slightly, she half-mouthed, half-whispered. ''Hey hey, Conner. ...would you like me to get down now, or should I stay here?''

There was that teasing lilt to her voice again. The same flirtatious nature that had gotten her a few drinks earlier on in the evening. She could admit she was shameless with her teasing and flirting...but she was no 'whore'. And that she was proud of; she knew the truth, that was all that mattered.

...but she had to admit, it was sooo fun to lead everyone on.

Still, after the little display was over and she was back on her feet, she waited as calmly as she could... As Taiku wandered amongst them, greeting and whatnot, she couldn't help but return the smirk he gave out... Maybe it was for a different reason, but what did it matter? She was having bunches of fun. It was what tonight was all about for her, anyway.

. o O ( Note: Couldn't find any decent pictures for a pink halter top...so I found one that was suitable...keeping in mind hers doesn't have quite so deep a V-neck. This. Yay. ^_^ )

[Aina Swanbeck]

(Got permission to use Mae Lim and permission for what I make her say)

Yay Valentine's day! This was one of Aina's favourite days of the year! It was the year where a bunch of hot and pathetic guys would buy her gifts in hope that she would choose them as her valentine of the day. That day, she did as usual. Accept gifts from everyone, act like she didn't care much, and later choose a football player to spend the rest of the day with just to crush the losers' hearts. She was her cruelest on the day of love, but she didn't give much of a damn. She was having fun after all. Plus, it's not like the day meant all that much to her. Aina had never truly been in love after all, so really, it was just a day she would get gifts, and that's all. But just because she had never fallen in love did not mean that she didn't have crushes. Yes, she did have the usual puppy love, but never anything serious. Love would just get in the way of her beauty, especially if he would break up with her and she would fall in some huge dramatic depression. So she avoided anything serious.

Well, after her good day she met up with a special....friend? Her 'best friend forever' or so she claimed, Mae-Lim. Poor Mae seemed to be almost harassed and stalked by the crazy blonde, but Aina could never get it through her head that she was doing some wrong and that she was actually very much hated by the black haired Asian. Oh well, maybe she would learn one day?
Either way, back on topic. The busty blonde met up with Mae as school ended, the raven haired girl seeming to fasten her pace as Aina caught a glimpse of her and started to walk towards her.
"MAAAAAAAAAE!!!!!!!!" she always screeched gleefully as she caught up to the Asian girl, hugging her from behind. But as usual, her hugs were never long ones for she feared to be attacked by Mae-Lim.
"Oh Em Gee, Mae! We HAVE to go partying tonight! We HAAAAAVE to! We ARE best friends after all and plus, I like totally heard from Cassandra that there was like, an awesome club party thing! And since they totally couldn't go 'cuz of their like dumb parents, I NEED you to come! Pretty please Mae Mae?" Who did she mean by 'they', well some of her closest cheer leading friends who didn't have rich and non-strict parents like she had.

"No." Mae-Lim answered in an annoyed voice that seemed to not have been heard from Ms. Airhead. A simple and yet strict answer that could only go one way. Did she get it at all. Nope. In fact....
"Oh my god! Great! Let's go!! Tee hee!" she exclaimed as she grasped Mae's hand and just dragged the girl along.
Yup, she was dragging the poor pitiful raven haired girl away towards the party she heard about.

-----------------------------------A little while later-----------------------------------

Finally, they were at the club. As they entered, the girls were given these ticket things, for god knows what really. But either way, Aina kept it safe in her pink coat pocket. Since it was Valentine's day, it COULD be for a prize of some sort; usually on things like this, tickets like this sort were for prizes after all. The blonde stood near the bar, sipping from a diet sprite she ordered. She was thirsty from dragging Mae all the way here after all. 'God, did Mae gain weight or something?' she thought as she wondered why it was so difficult for her to bring the Asian girl here; without even thinking that maybe, just maybe it was harder because of the fact that she was dragging the unwilling girl there.
"Oh Em Gee, it's like so fun here! And the music like, totally rocks, right Mae?" she asked.

The music suddenly stopped though and an Asian man came on stage. He was talking about something that Aina did not know about. Something about dona...ting? The hell was that? Aina had never heard of such a thing. But it seemed to have something to do with giving away money. Well, that sounded just absurd to her! The money was better off given to her no? Well, most people would disagree for an obvious reason, but this was Aina, the most conceited and money-hungry girl possible. So really, there could be no miracles made for her. If she suddenly cared for donating and giving to others, it would mean that the apocalypse was on it's way.

The man continued to speak and that was when a human raffle was introduced. A bunch of random people were chosen at this point and brought onto stage where they would be won by others as prizes.

"Oh God. Those girls are like, so hideous compared to me. They REALLY should have chosen me. Right Mae?" she asked the Asian girl.
Was conceited enough of a word to describe her? Maybe bitch was a better word...maybe. Either way, she knew she was beautiful and immediately assumed that she was much more beautiful then everyone else only because she was considered the most beautiful and popular girl in school. Man, she was a girl that most women would hate, and who could blame them?

[Vince]

Vince was giving a small grin on the day, he didn't particularly care for the meaning as he had yet to find a love that wasn't his own voice, but he did enjoy it for the one thing it gave.

Leverage.

It was this day that some girls would give him gifts to piss off jealous ex-boyfriends and every once in awhile there would be the sincere anonymous one that Vince never trace back. Maybe the girl would come forward, and he would prefer not to know if the sender was male.

The small grin would still be on his face as he wrapped his mind around those thoughts. Eventually finding his way to Legion and entering just behind a pair of polar opposites. Enjoying himself as he listened to a blonde's banter while trying to place the form of the dark haired partner.

He'd place Mae-Lim as the Blonde would start more speech about the current contestants being hideous. Vince would merely grin and lean in close to spread abit of reality to the girl. Types like these needed to be dropped down abit every once in awhile.

"You may be Aphrodite reincarnate, baby, but with a Mind like that, you're nothing but a plague ridden hag to me."

Vince would even put abit of charm into his grin, pulling off a rather respectable good look and aura to his form. Perhaps not enough to impress the Blonde, but maybe just enough for her to try to prove him wrong and search for his attention.

"You're friend on the other hand has a Lovely mind, if not the right thoughts for me and I already know that if she wanted she could probably beat on me pretty badly. Not a bad thing in the least."

The Mouth of Genaht would give Mae a playful shrug, taking advantage of the Neutral ground that Legion offered before moving away from the pair and wandering about the floor.

His eyes would turn upwards as Valencia walked on stage, the grin on his face growing wider. He had a vague idea of the prizes that were there and was getting a clue what he might aim for.

[Mae-Lim]

School was out, finally. Mae couldn't bare to be in here much longer. If it wasn't for the constant face-sucking her peers did, it was love-notes and candies from "seceret' admirers that would suddenly show up wherever she went. Of course, Mae-Lim didn't take any of them seriously. Probably a bunch of mischievous students trying to play a trick on her and trying to fluster her. Fat chance. Whoever they were, they could drop dead because this Horseman of Death wasn't about to fall for it.
Clearly, anyone who could ever be into her was insane. She was a nut-job and an ice-queen and part of a gang. Intriguing, maybe, but attractive? No. Much prettier, nicer and more social girls out there.

'Stupid Valentines day...I can't wait to get to Kyou's house and just sit watching the tv with him and my brother.'

Exiting the premises of the school, Mae-Lim could only hastely try and walk to the nearest bus-stop, to take her away to another stop so that she could grab a pay-phone and get a ride home. That was the plan, until a depressively familiar girl caught her sight. Maybe she could lose her without making it too obvious? She began to walk faster.

'Wonderful. That's ALL I need. My 'Best friend' coming here to brighten my day...' she thought, clentching her fists in frustration.

Aina bravely showed her "caring" by hugging Mae briefly after obviously catching up. Oh how she LONGED to finally just...HIT her. and yet, something always distracted her from doing so. Why? Why? WHY?
And it would happen again, the blonde blabbering uselessness as usual and Mae-Lim's mind unfortunately listening to her and possibly lowering her IQ in the process. How cruel life could be. 'Blast you karma.'

After getting an ear-load, Mae's answer would easily show how different the two girls were from one another. She gave a short and annoyed "No." and hoped it would get it's point across. However, unlike Mae-Lim, Aina's processing system seemed to be broken and the words got modified on the way there to her peanut-sized brain. Somehow, Mae-Lim had just accepted to go, and her fate was sealed the very moment Seth had made Aina Mae-Lim's practice-recruiting-person.

'This is all your fault, Seth....'

-----------------------------

Regardless of Mae's sad attempts to pull away from Aina, Aina's will proved stronger and Mae-Lim ended up just...giving up. While she didn't make it easy for the blonde to drag her away, Mae simply didn't try to pull away from her anymore. A quick twist of the wrist and she'd be free, but, too hell with it.

She was forced inside, and handed tickets. Mae-Lim looked at her tickets without much interest before slipping them in the arm-warmer of her captive arm. She had no pockets so the next best thing was there. At least it was secure and hell if she cared if she 'accidently' lost those tickets.

Anywho, she was dragged all the way to the bar, taking a seat on the stool and resting her elbows on the counter. She simply asked for water, and even then she ended up only staring at it.

Aina began an attempt at conversation, she supposed, and Mae-Lim's face seemed to turn into one of desperation as she looked up at the ceiling. She was almost begging God to smite her, but, she was sure he was getting a kick out of her situation.
"Actually, If you really want my opinion, Barbie, I think it-"

The music stopped and so did Mae, turning curiously to see what was going on. Her dark-coloured eyes looked towards the man on the Stage, whom was speaking.
"Donations?" she whispered to herself. "And here I just asked for water...." she gave a brief chuckle before contemplating on what to buy, to help contribute to such a cause. It was worth every penny, really. Then there was word of a raffle and Mae-Lim was glad to see she wasn't picked as a prize. Aina seemed to disagree with being non-prize-potential and again Mae was asked her opinion.

'For fuck's sake, lady, leave me alone...' she thought, letting her head drop onto the counter of the bar. Not hard though, sadly, so she couldn't fake a faint.

A witty comment came Aina's way, and it had actually managed to make Mae-Lim's day. Of course, until she figured out who it was from and then things just spiralled down into "GUH" and "Bleh" and "Merde".

She rose from her previous position, but kept her lean on the counter from where she sat. Her head did turn to look at that "oh so lovable" acquaintance of hers whom she had a bit of a tussle with long-ish ago. Regardless, Mae said nothing and simply glared at the Genaht-boy, who continued to speak away, this time the words being about her.
'Tch. How charming...'

She wasn't going to get cocky and make any sort of quip about what he said. Ya know, that part of her being able to kick his ass or however he put it. She'd just have to see one day, without Seth or Conner's intervention (not that it was unwelcomed). She simply smiled darkly on the inside before turning her attention on the stage. First thing she noticed was Aryn clamped onto Conner.

"Keh. Deja-vu?" she told to herself, remembering her own little glompage with Conner that time they met with the red-headed Pillar-boy....err...Alkaiser. Yeah! She supposed Conner was just a cling-on-to-able guy or something. Or just a great monkey-bar. Or both. Whatever.

"Aryn and Conner as a Prize. Heheh..."
Mae-Lim un-knowingly had let a smile cross her face. One of general amusement and for that moment, Mae-Lim forgot about Aina, Valentines day and all the angry thoughts she usually had.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

ooc: Right, if your name is mentioned in this, then you're up for raffle, if not, you're in the next post. For now, if you're the winner (and believe me, I don't even know who won yet, since Tanya did the PM'ing of tickets and didn't tell me), just post accordingly.

Mingling through the crowd proved a little more difficult than it normally would have at the moment, as much of the customers proceeded to stop him and congratulate him on the idea and shake his hand, almost all of them with wide grins on their faces at the notion of raffling off people. Sure, one or two seemed a little sore at not being chosen, and a couple even went so far as to ask if there were any spare tickets after having thrown theirs away, but those exceptions aside the response was overwhelming.

Eventually, it got to the point that in order to get his breath, Taiku had to slip away from the crowd, lingering around at the bar entrance hatch and watching the night unfold from a slightly more 'spacious' perspective. Looking closely, he could spot most of the 'prizes' in the crowd somewhere, talking with their friends or whatnot as they tried to comprehend the gravity of this situation. Sure, it was just a little bit of fun, but Taiku knew full well that particularly for the guys, the prospect of being drawn by another man was immensely awkward for them. Still, it was charity, and if it came to it, he'd have a private word with them afterwards to try and placate the situation.

Glancing down at his wrist, he gave a small smirk as he noticed the time, and turned into the bar, plucking a bottle of beer from one of the currently open chillers before popping the cap and taking a swig from it. Thankfully, nothing American. He'd never make a lie about it, but Taiku utterly loathed American beer, found it bland and unimaginative, almost completely without flavour. As such, he stocked mostly European types, and had a personal fondness for a certain Belgian brew called Stella Artois. Wiping the crest of his lips with the back of his thumb, he turned back and approached the stage again, stepping up with the music still in full swing and waiting quietly, smirking to himself as some of the crowd began to look on in curiosity. Within a minute or two, at least a third of the club was paying their attention to the smoothly dressed Asian on the stage, despite him saying and doing nothing, clearly awaiting whatever tricks he might have up his sleeve for now.

With a raise of an arm, the music cut and the spotlight returned onto him fully, causing the remaining customers to draw their focus toward him as he stepped a little closer to the mic.

"...Would the 'prizes' be so kind as to join me?"

Sipping the bottle lightly as the ten filed their way up, he set them in a line and walked up and down the length of it, making a slightly farcical show of 'inspecting' them one at a time, occasionally turning to the crowd with a very visual shrug and letting them cheer in reaction. Having completed one last pace down the line, he stood somewhat contemplative for a moment, turned back to the audience and nodded with a smirk, pacing back down and sending six of the ten back into the crowd for the time being...After all, what fun was there in doing this all in one?

"You can have four of them for now, but I think we need some more partying for the rest!"

A small smile crept onto his face as the lights on the stage shifted and split into four separate beams, one on each of the four who remained onstage. Glancing over at the nearest of the four, an attractive Hispanic female, he began to speak into the mic, akin to an auctioneer...

"First up is Carmen! Hailing from the Dominican Republic, she's a feisty little firecracker who parties hard and plays even harder. Watch yourselves, guys, I'd not like to get on the bad side of this one, ouch!"

In the spirit of things, despite a moments hesitation at the sudden show of attention, she began to play to the crowd, strutting along the length of the stage and waving at the front row of males who tried to catch her eye. Blowing a few kisses at them, she sidled back to a spot next to Taiku and waited as he continued, "Now, this is how it goes...", holding up a small black bag, like an old-style coin pouch, he undid the leather tie around the neck and opened it up, "All the corresponding numbers to the tickets that were given out are in here, all nice and folded up. Carmen's gonna draw one out and give it to me, I'll then read the number out, and if it matches your ticket, you make yourself seen and come on up here to prove it, then you can collect your....prize. Simple enough?"

The ripple of murmuring understanding was enough in itself, and he turned to Carmen with the bag, who proceeded to rummage through before pulling out a folded ticket. Handing it to Taiku, he read it aloud.

"Alright, first winner of Legion's human raffle is....Ticket number zero, one, four, three, six, two, nine!! Where are ya!?"

An arm shot up as a voice from somewhere near the bar shouted out, and with a glance to the stage-hand, the light set itself on the individual who began to make his way to the stage. Hopping up the steps, a wide smile on his face, a young man approached and held the ticket out to Taiku who scanned the number carefully, nodding with a smile and holding it in the air.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our first winner!! Now, if the pair of you go to the bar, ask for Rene. She'll go over the arrangements for your night out with you both. Congratulations again, and ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for Carmen!!"

As the pair descended from the steps, fervent applause accompanying them, Taiku began to speak again, this time as the light descended on another of the three remaining. This time a blonde girl who, in light of Carmens efforts, went to similar efforts to appease the crowd as her predecessor had done. Again, drawing the ticket, he read out the number and ushered another young man onto the stage who left with her a moment later...

Still, he pressed on further this time, and the light settled on the large blond male, Conner. Smirking to himself, Taiku stepped up to the mic again and spoke with the same showmans tone he'd held for the two previous prizes...

"Now, ladies, don't think we've forgotten about you...First up for the guys is Conner, hailing from San Francisco but with a streak of the Irish in him, he might be big and butch, but he's got a heart of gold..."

Glancing at Conner, raising an eyebrow at the icy glare he received for the remark, he turned back to the mic and shrugged with a grin, "..Okay, maybe he's just a big badass, but ladies, isn't it true that you like the bad boys?"

Smirking as he held the bag out, taking the ticket from Conner once he drew it out, he read it aloud clearly as before, "Alright, the winner is...Zero, one, four, three, five, four two!!"

[Conner]

The Horseman of War stood on stage grinning, half-expecting a punch to be thrown at him by the larger guy he was antagonizing. Unbeknowest by Aryn, he jump upon Conner would ease the tension, cutting off his contact with Pain Killer before he would have a chance to respond.

"Fuck!"

Conner exclaimed, being taken by surprise yet again by a girl looking for a piggy back ride. His cursing was drowned out by the crowd for the most part, though the ones on stage would be able to hear him. His eyes went to his "attacker," trying to place the face at this close of a distance. On instinct, his hands went to her lower back, serving no other purpose other than to keep from dangling at his sides.

The girl then half-turned, remarking to the crowd on Conner's availability. The turn gave him a better look, revealing to be none other than Aryn, one of the hottest girls he knew. Agitated at first, he began to ease up. Had he not been trying to look tough at the time, he would never have gotten irritated with Mae-Lim's jump before. Buzzed as he was while enjoying a party, Conner had no problem grinning in response to Aryn's actions.

"I'm comfortable, though I suppose it depends on how far down you intend to get."

Conner grinned, speaking even more shameless than usual. Despite his words, Conner would nudge Aryn off him gently (as he knew how to be, at least.) Not that he actually minded her being there, but the little asian guy started talking again. Conner was curious, and he wouldn't be able to see with Aryn up in his grill. Maybe he'd get back on that later...or vice versa.

One of the first people mentioned was himself. As Taiku spoke, Conner gazed over the crowd, looking for the attractive women he hoped to be paired with. Conner's gaze fell harshly back on Taiku, however, when he was called "big and butch." Not that the inmate knew what it meant. Conner had always heard it associated with homos, and if this little guy was calling him a homo he had something coming to him. Taiku gave him another look and kept talking. When he came over to take Conner's ticket the Horseman of War gave him a little piece of his mind. It was time to set this guy straight.

"I'm not gay, you're the homo."

[Felix]

Felix had entered Legion with the early crowd. The ones who start drinking way too early for their own good, but for the sake of everyone else, they always end up hurting themselves in some way or another. In the end watching people get plastered was funny to Felix, and on such a holiday as this, something was bound to happen.

Inside Legion, it had be decorated and Felix sat at the bar watching people come in every few seconds. He had a rum and coke, but he was sipping on it. There was no need for him to get tipsy. A shriek of laughter just came from the door, and Felix smiled. He was here for the eye candy, girls in skirts which were way too short, and then some were just too cute. He had thought about skipping tonight, but he trudged to his car and found himself here. He thanked himself for it as a few girls walked by and he caught one giving him the look over. 'Tonights going to be fun.'

Thirty Minutes Later

He saw the club owner climb up onto the stage and announce the evening activities. A lot of cheering and applause went up as the human auction idea was being filtered through a good amount of people. Felix himself liked it, though he hadn't even though about winning. Chances are that people were already assigned to win, and this was just for show and a good promotion for the reputation of Legion. He quickly looked down at himself, he was in his usual attire, minus the overcoat. He was sitting on that. He looked fine enough, if he were to win, though there were enough people in the bar to where even if one didn't win, there was always a chance elsewhere.

He finished his first rum and coke, ordered a second and sat leaning against the bar, watching the human raffle continue on.

[Valencia Donahue]

Valencia didn't exactly have stage fright. If anything, her supposed fear of being seen is selective. At the moment, this was one of those few moments that she felt uncomfortable... Mostly because her friends kept alluding to "happy things" she'd rather not think about. This was someone trying to practice abstinence, after all. But other than that, the uncomfortable feeling came more from the waiting than from being onstage. It sounds weird, but it's easier to understand once you get into Valencia's mind during a few moments that required her acknowledgment.

When Aryn got onstage, an impish grin was flashed her way. Valencia couldn't help herself from smirking back at her. They weren't exactly close, but their few meetings already created a reasonable acquaintanceship. They were the kind of "friends" who argue and are competitive, but mean no real ill-will. There is no ranking between them--just a scoreboard. And the points don't matter. Valencia wished that she had more friends of this kind, but decided that having such a relationship with Valerie was impossible with their conflicting attitudes and lots of stuff at stake.

You'd think that a brief meeting like that would make Valencia feel more comfortable... It would if it weren't for a comment she overheard in the audience. Something about being hideous. The "blind" Asian felt a bit hurt, but she tried to cover it up. It's been a while since she heard something like that and couldn't do anything about it. If this was school, she'd knock the girl's block off and do more not-so-nice-things for good measure. In a way, she liked the corporal punishment system for reasons her aunt and uncle promised her: People WILL get what they deserve, be it from the school or yourself. Valencia clouded out her shame with some unpleasant thoughts...

There's a dark alley around here I can "find" you in...

Before Valencia could think of how to make a murder not a crime, she heard a familiar voice respond to the first. It made her feel better that the person got reprimanded, but... Well, two things. He was as familiar as heck and he spoke to another familiar individual. Valencia scanned the crowd and matched up faces in her mind. It was Vince. He alluded to "happy things" before. Valencia face-palmed and suddenly felt "@$%$E^@" onstage again. Just what she needed. Another person out there who knows her and will keep trying to press her buttons each time she hides them in a new location. His grin didn't help.

PLEASE NOT THE HAPPY THINGS.

Happy is bad tonight, as it would seem. Valencia kept muttering things away under her breath, bearing some resemblance to Mae-Lim's attitude towards Aina. She knew Mae, but only acquaintance-wise. Valencia tested her fighting ability in exchange for information. In all honesty, Valencia was disappointed that the Horse(wo)man of Death didn't take charge or pose as much of a threat she was assumed to be, but that's science. Not everything follows the hypothesis. Valencia momentarily wandered about in her mind about what gang leaders are looking for nowadays whenever they enlist female members as her friends were avidly watching the motley crew interact with one another onstage.

And then... Taiku clarified once and for all what was going on with a demonstration. Valencia's eye twitched. Okay, she still didn't entirely know what was going on, but it certainly had nothing to do with Disneyland. It probably had to do with screaming bears and "happy things". Or maybe something else that's nice and a different kind of happy. The Vietnamese woman hoped that was the case so she'd get free stuff like she and her friends planned. The next prize that was up was Conner. She didn't know him, but him making a hullabaloo was going to quicken the introduction process. Ruth jumped up from her seat and held a napkin holder as though aiming for the large fella...

[RUTH]: "What? Not MANLY enough to love other guys along with women!? Or are you not endowed enough, if you catch my drift?!"

Don't diss homosexuality with lesbians in the crowd. If you're in San Francisco, it's really hard to avoid.

[Pain Killer]

In an uncharacteristic display of self-control, the self-proclaimed Pain Killer managed to ignore Conner's taunting, simply glancing towards the slightly smaller but considerably more outspoken young man. It seemed nothing could make this day get any worse, and the fact that he couldn't think of a decent comeback wasn't exactly helping, either. Thoroughly frustrated on the inside, Adam shoved his hands in his pockets, clenching and unfurling them in an attempt to relieve the growing anxiety within.

I'm never, ever going to one of these again, no matter what charity it is.

With a sigh, Adam closed his eyes, attempting to block out the entire scene for the moment. There was no one here he knew, which meant to him, there was no need to pay attention, though some things slipped through. He could hear someone make a ruckus with the guy who'd insulted him, whose name turned out to be Conner, which instantly gave him a dislike for the female who seemed to be on such friendly terms with him. After all, with friends like him, she had to be pretty crappy too, or so the reasoning went in the simple-minded Senior's head.

Once the raffle actually started, Pain Killer's eyes slowly opened, the youngest living Rydell reasonably interested in what was going on. The only one who'd made any impact on him thus far was Conner, as Mya was too busy enjoying herself, which meant that once the blonde man made a fuss about being labelled gay, Adam's frown turned upside down, so to speak. One of the females in the crowd seemed to take offense to Conner's declaration, and the self-proclaimed Pain Killer was only too happy to jump on that particular bandwagon.

"Awwww. Did he get a little too close to the truth for you, big guy?"

[Victoria Alexander]

(Ooc- Sorry Im tardy. Can’t wait till I get my own internet lol))

Victoria couldn’t help that even she was starting to have a good time. The thought that some poor girl would get stuck with a complete stranger seemed rather comical even if only for one night. Even she would have never thought of this. She always thought herself to be creative but this, specially on Valentines day really put the icing on the cake.

Looking out at the crowd, finishing off the dark pop in the glass she held, her eyes met the stage. Going over Taiku’s ((ooc-damn it I wanna put Kazuki lmao. Sorry old habit)) face she couldn’t help to notice that even he got over everything at Varron. If not he really had a good way of hiding it.

Its been two years, she told herself, surely only she would still grieve on her choices that led to the past. Shaking her head, she put her glass back down on the bar. Picking up her two tickets in her hands. Looking at them as instructed as Taiku rambled on the winners numbers for the female section of the room.

Looking down, quite questionably, going over the numbers in the back of her mind matching one, two, three, of the last numbers, surely the last number would be different. Victoria just had that kinda luck. The close but no cigar. Then the last number came. It almost didn’t register as she looked quite blankly at the ticket.

“Guess I did win.” She said more so to herself, she had actually won something, and truth be told it wasn’t what she ever had in mind. Sure one would like to win, but more for the prize of money or a car. A car would be nice. All well, floated in her mind as she stood up, slide her hands on her thighs to slide down the risen fabric and straitened up, pushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

Raising her hand in the air she spoke very loudly over the heads of the people in front of her that were clearly waiting for someone to claim the prize. She directed her comment towards Taiku.

“O Taiku, I do believe you owe me, my prize.”

If Taiku didn’t know she was there, he did so now. I wonder how he would take it. Most likely as casually as he can. He’s so sly when he hides his true face, Victoria thought soundly.

Then taking her eyes over to her prize. She measured him more like a piece of meat that a butcher would eye over. Gauging that from his attitude towards Taiku from the beginning showed that he was more talk than walk. Not much of a ladies man, she presumed.

Waving her slender arm in the air, she waited for what came next.

[Kazuki Akimoto]

Taiku said nothing at Conners remark, blanking the blond man out before a few members of the crowd made their distaste clear...He knew full well that San Francisco was a 'gay mecca' of sorts, and whilst he made no efforts to turn Legion into a gay club, it certainly drew its fair share through the doors. With a muted mental smirk, he remembered just how happy Rocco had been the first few nights the club had filled out and the sight of a very large Italian man practically prancing around the floor like a kid in a candy store.

"You wanna think before opening that mouth of yours, blondie. Whatever your reservations may be, I'm not making assumptions, so take it easy. Besides, a girl won you, so you've nothing to worry about, capiche?"

Smirking slightly at Conner, knowing the chance of the blond losing his calm was very much there but making no show of worry about it, he turned toward the crowd again to actually see who had won the uncouth young man.

What he saw made his blood run cold for an instant, and for the first time that night he was left silent at the mic, albeit for but a split second....

'Victoria...?'

The smile emerging again, he gave a wide gesture across the crowd down to Victoria as she was ushered towards the stage. "Ladies and gents, a big hand for the winner!! Come on up and claim your prize!"

Unsure of her reasons for being in San Francisco, and more specifically, what her motives were, he maintained a suitably veiled calm and made no direct, obvious connection to her. Until later, when he could speak in more suitable circumstances, he was still the businessman and the entertainer. Admittedly, the eye she gave Conner made his lips curl in a twitch of amusement...She was always a little bit of an ice queen with strangers, and Conners outburst probably just made it all the worse for him later on. Secretly, he was considering setting up cameras to follow the couples on their dates as a 'recap' for next years event....What a sight that would be, indeed.

"Well, you both know the drill by now, go and speak with Rene at the bar, she'll fix up your date for you and you can both get back into the crowd!"

As he spoke, his head shifting between the pair, he paused on Victoria a moment longer, a flicker in his expression that she would have to be a fool not to pick up on. One that both asked why she was here, and said to stick around to speak with him...However, he had no place at the moment for his own agenda, and after ushering the pair off with another round of applause from the crowd, though a few boo's rang through for Conners little faux pas earlier, he brought forward the last of the original four, another girl. However, after the slight fracas of Conners raffling, there was little remarkable as she drew her ticket and was paired off with a guy from the front row....Unluckily for the pretty young lady, her 'winner' was not of the same visually pleasing ilk...A few sympathy cheers were given as the pair slipped off, the girl mortified at her unfortunate luck, though left with no argument at a free night out on her favorite clubs owner.

With the first round of the raffling over, Taiku gave a wave through the air as the lights lowered significantly, leaving just enough for the customers to see their way around, and putting the stage into a near pitch black haze, only the trickles of smoke from a fog machine he'd hired for the sake of providing a cliche 'atmosphere' for the raffle to be clear and visible.

"Four are gone, six are left...Don't worry, folks. We'll get to them soon, but in the meantime, we need the music back on."

A moment passed as no sound escaped the speakers, and behind Taiku, if people strained enough, a faint hint of movement could be caught...Still, all those efforts would be in vain a moment later as a taller figure stepped out from the darkness behind Taiku to the strum of a guitar from the side of the stage, starting with a light riff before bursting into a full melody with drums and bass. As Taiku slipped away from the stage, his own spotlight now over the singer as he began to belt out his lyrics, fans of the band would recognise the song quickly, along with the band...

Room 21

The lights rose on the stage as the song climbed to its peak quickly, and Hinder were revealed to the crowd...It had taken several favours and a lot of persuasion on Taikus part, but he'd been able to secure the band for a set tonight in aid of the charity event. Proud of his efforts, he stood by the bar and sipped slowly from a glass as they played. For the next part of the night, they would provide the musical entertainment for him, and allowed the Asian a window of time to enjoy his own accomplishment for the evening.

'It's going to be a good one...'


ooc: Right, couple of things real quick. Firstly, anyone else who wants to be recognised as a participant in the raffle has until SUNDAY at the latest, when I will post my next segment of this thread. Secondly, for those wondering why I chose Hinder, I just like the band. Sue me otherwise.

[Ryou Jackson]

OOC: So sorry everyone for the delay, I have no Internet at home, so I'm forced to post...at a library! Oh the horror, a library of all places!? Ah hem, anyways, without further ado.

Ryou slipped into Club Legion, a piece of paper crumpled up in his left fist. As he walked through the entrance, he was given a paper with numbers printed on it. " What the...?" he thought, puzzled, but he just shrugged it off. He just came here for the heck of it, the name and the address of the club written on the paper, which someone not so discretely dropped in front of him as he had walked by in the school hallway. He immediately made his way to the bar, and ordered a glass of water, he didn't really like pop all that much, his dislike for it influenced by the fact that at home, he drank Japanese drinks, courtesy of his mom. He made his way to one of the tables, his water in his hand and sat down, feeling slightly out place, especially on this day, Valentine's Day of all days. Before he could even catch his breath, Taiku, the owner of Club Legion, appeared on the stage with a huge entrance.

" Gotta hand it to him, he knows how to catch the audience's attention." he thought, smiling slightly.

He then began with an introduction, mentioning a charity, with the money made from tonight going to an organization for cancer, and an explanation of what was happening tonight, including the piece of paper that Ryou was handed when he walked through the door. " So that's what this paper was for." he thought, looking at the other piece of paper in his right hand. A spotlight that was centered on him then split into a second spotlight, shining on a girl in the front row.What came next was something Ryou was not expecting. As he settled down in his chair, a bright spotlight shone on him, blinding him. " What the...?" he said, using his left hand to shield his eyes. " So...bright...can't see." He then heard Taiku telling him to come up to the stage. " Say what!?" he said, shocked, this was something he did not expect. " Seriously? Oh very well then..." he murmered, sighing, then getting up from his table and walking onto the stage, joining the others that were already on the stage. " Well, talk about your interesting events. This'll be one night I sure as heck won't forget for a looong while." Ryou thought, smiling slightly.

The event began, and he was immediately asked to leave the stage, while four people were left onstage, the first four human prizes to be raffled off and won. Ryou stood off to one side, leaning on the bar counter, his hands in his pockets, looking throughly disinterested. He scanned the crowd in front of him, a girl with black hair and another with blond hair catching the corner of his eyes, but his gaze quickly slid elsewhere, back at the stage. Already two people were already won, and it looked like two more were up for grabs. " Ho boy, I wonder what's gonna happen next." Ryou thought, looking bored, " I hope it's something that'll create an uproar!" Uproars were always a blast, as long as he could get a good laugh out of it, and it didn't involve him.