Picking Up The Pieces [Reiko/G]

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 880 Words • notes

“Now ladies and gentlemen, it’s the time I’m sure you’ve all been waiting for. I’m sure our stage’s little siren needs no introduction, so put your hands together for Miss Reiko Nakidori!”

Clapping hands and even a few cheers and whistles greeting the beautiful brunette as she stepped out into the lounge area of the Kabukicho bar where she had her little gig tonight, with a smile a mile wide and a couple of waves she headed toward the small stage on which she was to perform. In a modest little venue that was geared more toward those who liked to get their drink on with a little bit of light entertainment, the bar in total was about the size of a tennis court with one end dedicated to service with a ‘U’ shaped arrangement of where beverages were dispensed from lined with stools while on the opposite end stood the little performance area.

About a dozen round tables were arranged in an attempt to make the place look a little classier than your average public house or club and often people played jazz or like Reiko performed voice work backed up by an in house pianist. That particular presence one that the girl rather appreciated, while the dark haired woman had been taking steps to learn that tinkling and teasing instrument through lessons that were paid for by a breathy voice and low neckline, given the fact that she had yet to master it at a performance level and as such needed the aid of another to put a melody to her lyrical routine. Having played this place before and flirted her way to enough tips about tickling keys to know that the man they had in was more than enough to support her, while her voice was good the addition of another musical element was much like putting cream or custard on a nice slice of pie. It could stand up on its own, but perfection was found with that little addition to really set it off.

“Well well, what a nice looking crowd we’ve got here~” Slipping up the couple of steps that led to the little area where the pianist played and a microphone had been set up for her, with the ever present smile of a professional performer, Miss Nakidori wrapped her fingers around the stem-mounted device and looked over the crowd. Perfectly capable of using her quirk to raise the volume of her voice enough to let even her ordinary speech fill the room but not doing this so as not to test her ability and also keep it secret and safe, the dark haired girl carried a tiny little bit of a husky tone in her words as she spoke.

“I can see some familiar faces and a few that would like to be more than familiar~” Nothing too heavy but definitely possessing more ‘woman’ in her words than girl, one might note that it was the sort of vocal projection that carried confidence and a sense of control. Lifting up the mic only moments before but using that mild depth of voice she possessed along with a few playful choices of wordplay to command the attention of the room, feeling a sense of power as she did so.

“Well the night’s still young and my rent’s due, so who knows where we might end up~?” Perfectly comfortable in front of a crowd like this because of the experience she had, even before her teens Reiko had stood before groups of strangers to sing and have people take notice of her. Started working gigs like this in her late teens and having more than a couple of years of focusing on her career as a singer like this, it felt such a long time ago that the brunette had felt any ounce of apprehension at the thought of being the centre of attention she wasn’t even sure it had ever happened to her at all. Demanding the interest and respect of the crowd and happy to see she had gotten it, with the mic now resting gently in her hand she slid her feet across the small stage and whispered the name of the first little number she intended to perform, before moving back to the centre and feeling perfectly assured by the fact that she knew that without saying anything all eyes in the room where on her.

“Now, how about we get this thing started with something I want you all to remember, night or day~” Flicking her hair slightly and speaking to her crowd as behind her the pianist ordered his sheet music and then began to play a short but slow piano variation of a classic song, Miss Nakidori felt like a queen waiting to address her ‘subjects’, albeit through the form of a song. Closing her eyes for a few seconds as she let the melody that her partner played permeate her and felt like each and every note was the beat of a drumroll building up to greatness, the girl felt a thrill as a brief but agonizing wait was over as she gave a jazzy and gentle rendition of a song that started with the line ‘Colour me your colour, baby~’…

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 929 Words • notes

“My thank you, you’re such a wonderful audience~ One of our best, I’d say?” The upbeat swingy almost showgirl-esque variation on a song that was originally sung but a certain Miss Harris finishing up and the entertainer taking a moment or two to let her breathing settle and look over the crowd as the practised smile of a performer resumed itself, Reiko shone in the spotlight and while what she said was probably something that had left her lips a thousand times before it wasn’t entirely untrue.
“I mean they pay me to say that, sure, but it does come from the heart a little~!” Appreciating the nods of heads and tapping of feet she saw as she stood before these people and basking in the small applause she was given for her first song, in the mind of the dark singer mind it was best to perform and respond to the crowd like it was your best one ever, since it usually helped it to ring true.

“Well, now that we’re warmed up or loosened out or I suppose at the very least a little less sober, let’s see who we’ve got in tonight, shall we?” Knowing that a true performer not only pleased but also engaged with her crowd, Miss Nakidori loved the attention she received on stage but in her own way was also enough of a professional to accept that the people in front of her were usually the hidden member of the band. Feeding off their energy in order to make her act better, while a hostile group wasn’t something that would affect her performance too much the magenta-eyed mistress always felt happier and more alive doing a gig for people who got into it, and that’s why she stepped from the stage and began moving between the tables that made up her audience in no set pattern.

“Hey handsome~ You look like you’re enjoying my little show so far, and the music isn’t bad either is it?” Microphone in hand and picking up on those little cues from others to make the atmosphere a little more relaxed and playful, after spotting someone eyeing the cleavage visible through the ‘window’ in her dress, Reiko couldn’t help but single the fellow out with a grin and a cheeky little one liner as she drew her hand up herself.

“Oh look at this? Hey darling, in a dress like that you can definitely call me anytime~!” Slipping through the gathering of seated people and always loving to single out the ladies in the crowd given the fact that her playful mannerisms and often provocative music choices tended to attract more male than female ‘fans’, with a little wink the minx with the mic eyed the form of a good looking middle aged woman and couldn’t help but send her a little line to hopefully bring some blush out in her cheeks before moving on.

“Oh, looks like you’re here again, Seiji? This is becoming a bit of a habit, us bumping into each other like this, isn’t it?” Weaving through the tables in a largely indiscriminate fashion and finding a face that she remembered from a couple of other performances, she felt amused by the idea of having something of a fan and lavished a little more of her cheekiness on him.
“Well if you’re stalking me, then at least I know I can get hammered tonight and there’ll be someone who knows the way back to my apartment~!” Standing over the table he was sitting at and leaning forward in order to lightly run her index finger along his jaw with a sultry smile, while she was playing things up as much for the crowd as this particular individual, while her teasing might have been a little on the harsh side, Miss Nakidori felt happy that she might have picked up another regular and not just because it made her a little more ‘valuable’ to clubs like this as an artist.

Looks like not everyone’s happy though… Slipping from the company of her fanboy after giving him a small and apologetic pout to tell him despite her words that she was only joking around, Reiko swayed between the tables and found something that stood out to her. Spotting a figure with bright white hair which seemed to perfectly contrast her own rich and dark locks seemed to be sitting with a face that looked like he had been chewing on a wasp and that simply wouldn’t do at all, so naturally she made a beeline for this seemingly unsatisfied customer.

“Well hello, you look new. This your first time, sweetheart?” Curious about what was troubling the man who nursed his beer in the bar and even more so as she noticed how big his frame was and how handsome he was despite the sour face he was wearing, the singer stood in front of his table and spoke into her microphone with batting lashes as she eyed the guy who stuck out like a sore thumb.
“Don’t worry, I love to break in a cherry~” Not even waiting for him to answer whether he had been here before as she laid out yet more flirtation in an effort mostly to try and get this tense figure of a man to relax and loosen up, Miss Nakidori shot a wink his way and teased the grump lightly, feeling a little bit offended that her routine hadn’t at the least put a half smile on his face…

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 721 Words • notes

Tend to someone else now? The words that the white haired guy had chosen seeming to be like waving a red sheet at a bull, as the public face she wore slipped just a tiny touch and a sense of fire burned in her red eyes as she gave a smiling glare to this morose character, Miss Nakidori was sure to do no such thing.
Who the hell does he think he is?! The type that loved to be the centre of attention, not only did she find the fact that she was shooed away somewhat offensive but also only made the more determined and rebellious part of her surge to the surface, albeit in a manner befitting her current role.

“Oh my, now why would I do that when you’re looking so unhappy?” Flicking her hair out as she attempted to contain her annoyance at the attitude that she had been shown, as the smiling singer looked over the faces around her then back to the slightly frustrating fellow in front of her, the tone of her voice reflected none of the ill emotion she had been given in his reply. Leaning against his table with her rear and resting her weight upon the surface in a manner that said she wasn’t going anywhere any time soon, the vocal vixen eyed the features of the sour man silently for a few seconds, wanting him to know he was being appraised by a woman like her.

“As a performer I pride myself on my ability to make sure that anyone who leaves my show does so happier than when they were arrived, so…” Deciding there was a challenge in earning the appreciation and a smile from this stranger, there was an aspect of this little game that made her feel like she would be coming out on top if she did so and as if to assert her dominance on the man, the cheeky girl reached forward and snatched up his beer to take a sip from it.

“Wow, no wonder you’re in a bad mood drinking that!” Tasting the most low class cheapest item they had on their menu and scowling slightly before chuckling, Reiko placed the drink back down on the table and waved to the man at the bar across the room, speaking over her mic as she did so.
“Can we get this guy a couple of bottle of the good stuff? On me?” A girl that was always rather forward and rarely gave a concern to concepts like chivalry and such, while convention generally tended to demand that women were the ones who were bought the drinks by men, the dark haired songstress was happy to buck convention both when she liked the look of someone and when trying to make a point. In this case those two factors seemed to line up.

“There you go, now you won’t be as uncouth as to leave my show until you’ve finished your drinks, will you? I’m sure you’re a gentleman deep down.” The barman responding speedily and as she waited and let her foot bob up and down for a few seconds Miss Nakidori wore a bit of a smug smile as a couple of bottles of something ice cold as well as frothy, strong and imported were brought over to the table for this moody man to enjoy.
“So enjoy those on me and who knows, maybe you’ll have a good time tonight?” Straightening up again once the drinks had been served and the waitress who had brought them had shuffled away, with a hand on one hip and her microphone in the other, the brunette began to swagger away from the table with a swing in her hips as she felt victorious in the moment, before stopping and looking over her shoulder.

“Oh, and since I’m treating you tonight… You have any requests, hunny bun?” Perhaps looking back to see what sort of reaction she might have provoked but also in her own way curious as to what sort of music this man might like, with her silver earing flashing in the light from the way she had cast her head backward, Reiko shone with a smile and wondered just how this glum fellow might respond…

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 837 Words • notes

That’s a little more like it! The manner of the man not changing significantly but his word of thanks and the implication which she took from his response to her asking if he had any requests seeming to imply he was feeling a little less prickly by what she had done, Miss Nakidori’s smile grew a little brighter as she savoured this personal victory and strutted back toward the stage.
“Now, now, don’t you lot get moody too… I really will have to start turning a trick or two to buy the whole bar a drink~” Knowing that she had maybe demonstrated a hint of favouritism there and yet using another little line in order to try and limit the damage it might do amongst the crowd, after flashing a wink to a couple of people the singer climbed back atop her podium and placed her microphone back on its stand briefly as she took a drink from a glass of water to moisten her appetite for her next number.

What to do next? Surprise him, he said… That white haired fellow still having an effect on her even when she had returned to the stage, as she put her glass down Reiko couldn’t help but look toward the figure who had caught her attention as she wondered what to perform as her follow up.
“OK, now since I’m generously being given free reign over the song choice, I think I’ll go for a song that always reminds me of the greatest man I’ve had in my life… Maybe you'll think my song is half as good as he was?” Unsure of why exactly the encounter with the surly fellow reminded her of her dearly departed dad but then he was never far from her thoughts really, after letting her partner on the piano know what she was planning on singing the dark haired girl stepped up to the microphone sounding and looking a little softer in her character.

The films he loved were so cheesy, but that was what was so great about them… Certainly those memories bringing out the best side in her, for some reason she felt compelled to demonstrate a contrast to the dry and dominating manner she had shown earlier on and pulled her hands together in front of her stomach as she went for a more serious and sombre note than before.
That was what was so great about him… Recalling the first time she had heard the song as her pianist began to warm up the keys with the intro, it had been while watching an old action film set on a plane about some rough around the edges father that Miss Nakidori had first heard the tune and had been one of the first she had mastered as well, loving to sing it for her dad when he seemed tired or in need of some soothing sweetness in her voice.

“How do I~ Get through one night without you~”
“If I had to live without you~”
“What kinda life would that be~?”

The mind of the young singer filling with images of her father as she began the lyrics, even seven years after the death of her father, it still made her chest and heart feel tighter as she thought of the most beloved man she had in her life. Naturally not telling the crowd of who exactly the man was whom she was thinking of but rather letting them draw their own conclusions, her voice resonated with a little more feeling as she sang from her heart in front of the crowd, feeling like a balloon of emotion within her was trying to burst and let what was inside it free into the air around the stage.



It a bit of a struggle really to hold back that urge to cry which she felt but blessed with the stage and life experience she needed to mask such things up, Miss Nakidori had found that every time she had sung this song since the passing of her patriarch she had wished he was there to hear it. Remembering their last meeting and how she had ran away from him and never gotten to give him a real goodbye, a part of the girl still wished she had sung something like this to him instead of fleeing his company. If she’d done something, anything, that showed she had accepted him despite his faults then maybe her dad would still be alive?

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 847 Words • notes

“Well, I’m afraid that’s your lot for tonight~!” Taking a few slow breaths as she finished off her last song of the night, after mixing up a few ballads with some racy numbers with just the right amount of wordplay in them Reiko felt a little short of breath after all of her performing and the spotlights she was in was starting to show the shine of perspiration on her brow. Singing more exhausting than one might have thought even when they were blessed with a quirk that gave a person a natural talent for it, while the attention she was receiving made her want to carry on, the siren held herself back from such temptation so as not to overstrain her voice. After all, this wasn’t the only gig she had this week.

“I know, I know, but in show business you’ve always got to keep them wanting that bit more, a girl’s gotta make her living after all, and there’d be no reason to come to my next gig if I showed you everything now would there~?” Naturally the crowd giving a bit of a groan as she made it to the end since she left them on a bit of a high note with a little performance of ‘It’s not fair’, the brunette shone with perhaps the most genuine smile she had shown all night as she offered a bit of an apology, glad to see that her routine had an impact on them. However, now a little on the tired side and certainly feeling a thirst for something more than water she shook her head and left a hook that would hopefully bring the majority back for the next occasion.

“So all of you make it home safe and come back to see me soon, because I know you all miss me already~” Smiling for her crowd before giving them a playful series of waves, as applause filled the room Miss Nakidori ducked forwards into a little bow for her cheering fans and then began to giggle as a stemmed rose shot through the room and landed next to her.
“Oh, how thoughtful! Stay safe everyone!” Snapping up the flower and smelling it with a smile before offering her last goodbye of the night and slipping off the stage, the dark haired songstress eyed the gift she had been given looking over the group and spotted the fact that the white haired fellow was still here, which pleased her even more than the rose, oddly.

Looks like either the drink or the music gave him a reason to stay, didn’t it? Flashing a smiling wink toward the table that G was sat on but not seeing whether he would catch it or not before she ducked into the little door to the back area of the bar, Reiko hummed to herself gently as she moved through the much narrower section and followed a path that would take her to the servery. Picking up a tall tumbler she could fill with water for her flower and leaving the item on the table where she had gotten changed earlier on for safe keeping, the dark haired girl sank a little more of the bottle of whisky she had left on the table there and let out another moan as she tasted it, before slipping back to the doorway and checked to see if the morose man had slipped away with the rest of the crowd, hoping he had not.

The night’s still young for me, so let’s live a little, shall we? A mischievous expression colouring the features of the foxy femme as she scanned the room and spied that the object of her interest still seemed to be here, after waiting a minute or two to let the room empty she slipped across the room to get a glass for her whisky and also another bottle of that good imported beer that she had asked for earlier, before slinking across to the table where the mysterious man waited for reasons she could only guess.

“Looks like you managed to stick it out to the end, huh? Mind if I have a seat, sweetheart?” Smirking in a smug fashion a bit like a cat who had gotten the cream as she slid into place at an empty chair at the table of this stranger and laid the bottle of beer in front of the man, with a grin the girl waited expectantly for an agreeable answer and almost seemed to imply with the fact that she would take no for an answer as she draped her own drink on the table in front of her. Naturally expecting that he would have no power to refuse her but still wanting that permission so that the handsome but seemingly subdued fellow would have no choice but to acknowledge her, Miss Nakidori lightly tapped the tip of her toe on the ground behind herself as she waited and gave him a little pout in order to heighten the chances of approval…

template by punki of adoxography

Reiko Nakidori • Banshee

@tag • 832 Words • notes

“Oh, so kind, don’t mind if I do~” Licking her lips a little as the white haired man consented to her company, Reiko slid the chair around the table enough to ensure there was no question as to whether or not her presence here implied a desire to interact with the spaced out fellow and slipped into her seat with a little bit of a chuckle.
“That’s another one for you, since you liked the others so much~” Feeling a little bit excited to get some alone time with the stranger she had struggled to ignore as she had gone through her renditions of hits that were now getting close to a hundred years old as well as a few original tracks she had written herself, the brunette beamed as she pointed out the drink she had bought, wondering if the boost that such an act gave to her ego was the reason that she had been bought so many in the past.

“Well then, here’s to us and a great show! Cheers!” Unlikely to have been the only reason given how good she looked but an interesting theory, she poured herself a drink on the ice she had put in her tumbler at the bar and then lifted up the container to clink it lightly against the bottle of her companion, whether he wanted to or not. Smirking all the while and once her toast was done Miss Nakidori eagerly bringing the smooth and smoky fluid to her mouth and enjoying the extra little bit of tingle that the ice gave to her drink, she let out a sigh of satisfaction once she had swallowed her drink and then placed the glass on the table and idly began to run her fingertip around it’s rim.

“Nothing like a good drink after work is there, my friend?” Still oozing that overly familiar and slightly flirtatious manner that she showed around strangers as she spoke to the guy she had quite generously opted to give her company for the evening, as she toyed with her whisky receptacle gently the dark haired girl let her magenta eyes wash over the features of her new friend in a more relaxed setting.
What’s his deal then? I bet those eyes are usually a lot sharper than this… Those icy irises he possessed seeming almost as frosty as the material she had in her drink but something about the manner of the man telling her that they did not tell the whole story of his character, it was plain to anyone with half a brain that something was bothering him and for some reason this intrigued Reiko to no end.

“You know I’m used to men who like to ogle my ass or my cleavage or even the odd soul who actually seems to enjoy my music, but the type of guy who comes to a place like this and tries to avoid my attention… That’s rare.” Looking down at her drink for a couple of seconds as she idly wondered just why this distant and delicious figure of a man seemed so alluring to her despite the disinterest that he had shown, after lifting her drink up and taking another sip from it the girl shared the theory behind why she thought that was.
I hope this isn’t some kind of master seduction technique; get the girl to come onto you by being distant and mysterious… Hats off though if it is, it seems to be working a bit! The clues that she spotted about the sullen individual who had grazed her ego a little earlier on seeming to pluck at whatever threads of empath she possessed and seemingly made him stand out from the crowd, Miss Nakidori’s experience from behind the bar rather than on a stage in front of it told her that men often had a reason to keep quiet, but she also knew she shouldn’t press too hard all at once to find out what that was.

“So I’d assume you know my name from my introduction, but this puts me at something of a disadvantage in that regard, so what’s your name, stranger?” Placing her drink back on the table again and this time resting her hand on the surface next to it, Reiko shifted in her seat slightly to rest her weight on the elbow and she continued to eye her companion with plenty of curiosity but without much shame.
“Or would you prefer I keep calling you darling or hunny bun?” Biting her lip again as she felt the urge to add another playful little line to the end of her request in an effort to disarm the man further, in many ways the dry little lines and flirtatious innuendo she so often relied upon were means toward such a goal for both her company and herself, preferring to be funny and quirky or even sexy than ever being ‘real’…