Valentino

As he exited the private room, Cyrus let out a deep sigh. "Y'know Ryota, I think that guy just wanted to shirk his security duties and pass them off onto us. I don't even know if he's really investigating the incident at all," Cyrus said to his partner.

"Yeah, I thought the same. Either way, I don't want anyone here to get hurt while I stand by and watch. So let's do as he said," Ryota replied, clearly a little frustrated as well. Cyrus gave a quick nod of acquiescence, and the two embarked out onto the dance floor. After briefly discussing, they decided it would be better to keep watch on separate ends of the building, that way they would have less blind spots and be more likely to notice any potential suspects.

Cyrus found an area off the the side of the bar that had clear visibility of nearby exits and the surrounding area, so he decided to post up there. After only a few moments, he felt something glance against his leg, and quickly turned around, expecting a confrontation. To his surprise, Cyrus' eyes were met with a beautiful young women. She looked to be in her mid to late twenties; her auburn hair cascaded in curls down past her shoulders, she had piercing azure eyes, and she wore a black and light pink romper, sparsely adorned with hearts.

"Sorry about that," the woman said with a smile. "But, what are you doing here standing off to the side like a loner? No one to dance with?"

WC: 260

Ryota carefully scanned his surroundings. A man joyfully twirling another girl, a group of friends chatting at the bar, two girls talking together with two guys. Nothing particularly out of the ordinary. In the center of the dance floor, a middle-aged man was dancing with intense fervor and dripping sweat. He didn't appear to be dancing with anyone, and in fact, his eyes were closed. "How odd," Ryota thought to himself, "he has to be on something. But we aren't here to bust people for partying too hard." He averted his attention away from the man, and looked at the bar once more. A gorgeous woman sat alone, absentmindedly stirring her cocktail and staring off into the distance. She abruptly turned her head and made direct eye contact with Ryota, flashing a warm smile. Ryota quickly averted his eyes, not intending to be caught staring or give the wrong impression, but once he glanced back over in her direction, he saw that she had already begun to walk over to him. She wore a red and white one-piece outfit, with red lipstick and garish jewelry. Although she appeared to be a regular at this type of scene, of which Ryota was not, she didn't have an off-putting or intimidating aura. He garnered a sense of extroversion, compassion and warmth. Although small talk and meeting new people has never been Ryota's forte, he nearly felt excited to speak to this woman. Strolling up to him with a bit of bounce in her step, she smiled once more and introduced herself. "Hey there, I'm Lin."

WC: 263

"I could say the same to you," Cyrus replied. "You're the only other one over here."

The girl raised her eyebrows and smiled; "Perceptive, huh? I work here at the casino, but I've got a bit of free time right now. I work as a dancer with my friend on the weekends, and we don't have to do anything until the show later tonight. Thought I'd walk around and mingle a bit, y'know?"

Cyrus tried to follow what she was saying, but he was lost in thought while staring into her eyes. She was definitely his type. However, seeing someone trip and fall in the background brought Cyrus back to reality, and he realized he still had a mission to accomplish.

"I hate to cut this off, but I'm actually working for the casino tonight as well. I'm doing security, and I know I won't be able to stay focused on my job with you here. Could we continue this conversation later tonight, when we're both done with our work? I'll be here" Cyrus said, trying to make sure she didn't think he was just blowing her off.

"Sure," she quickly replied, with no hint of disappointment in her voice, "I should be finding my friend anyway. She disappeared off into the crowd without me and I've been looking around for her. Since you're keeping watch, give me a shout if you see her, 'kay?"

Cyrus nodded his head, and she smiled before walking off onto the dance floor.

WC: 249

"I'm, uh, Ryota," he said back somewhat shyly. A vast majority of the confidence that he had built up while Lin walked over seemed to have vanished once she started speaking.

"Well 'uh Ryota', what're you doing here tonight? Doesn't look like you're doing much partying?" Lin said back playfully.

"I'm actually here as security, I'm supposed to be making sure nothing gets out of hand and keeping watch for a specific person," Ryota said.

"Ooo, how mysterious," replied Lin, "I'm not doing anything special like that, I'm just a dancer. I've gotta go up and dance pretty soon, but I don't really feel like I'm in the mood for it tonight. Don't feel that spark, y'know?"

"Yeah, I guess. I'd say dancing is pretty interesting, I know I can't do it," said Ryota.

Lin seemed to light up when he said this, and replied almost instantaneously. "No way, I'm sure I could teach you!" she said, "how about you watch me tonight, and then I'll give you some pointers afterwards."

Ryota didn't plan on doing any dancing tonight, and he definitely didn't intend to sign himself up for dance lessons, but he felt compelled to say yes to whatever she asked him. "Yeah sure, I could do that," said Ryota.

"Awesome! I'll come and find you after my performance is over, make sure you stick around here," Lin said with a bubbly voice. Then, without much warning, she gave a wave and a smile and ran off towards a back room, presumably to change.

WC: 255

TWC: 1829
Missions Done: C.R.U.S.H., H.E.A.R.T., and F.L.I.R.T.

+9000 Ryo
+45 AP
+14 Chocolates
+18 Vigor
1750/1750 WC for Damage Reduction Shield B-Rank [Previously 1162/1750]
1241/1250 WC for Spirit Gun

TWC: 1828
Missions Done: C.R.U.S.H., H.E.A.R.T., and F.L.I.R.T.

+9000 Ryo
+45 AP
+14 Chocolates
+18 Vigor
1000/1000 WC for Earth Release Rock Shelter C-Rank (previously 56/1000)
500/500 WC for Earth Release Rock Shelter B-Rank
388/2750 WC for Shadow Sewing Technique

Approved