8110/A Hangover She Might Deserve

A Hangover She Might Deserve
Date of Scene:	04 October 2021
Location:	Jubilee and Noriko's Room
Synopsis:	After her awful experiences at a vampire rave, Jubilation stumbles back to Noriko's room puzzled on some drug blood. She tells Nori what happened and the two share an intimate moment.
Cast of Characters:	Noriko Ashida, Jubilation Lee

---

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko already went over to Jubes' to see if she was around.  She wasn't, and after about an hour of waiting around and napping and waiting around, it just felt like it was time to return and concede defeat for the night.  It's not like they had any agreement to meet up.  Noriko never said she was coming over, but is that ever really a question?

Currently she's sporting some cotton shorts and an some old band tshirt that is too messed up to really recognize.  She's swept up part of her hair into a topknot.  She sits on what was once her and Jubilation's bed, and before that, Jubilation's bed alone.  The other one still has a mound of stuff on it in that time honored tradition.  One leg is drawn up, the other stretched out off the side of the bed as she slumps forward, reading and writing.  One hand is taking care of the pages it looks like.  The other remains on a pen that marks up the pages of a spiral notebook at speed.  And propped up against the wall on the bed is a whole office-size supply of pens.  On the ground is a small pile.

Suddenly, Noriko appears to be still, resting back against her pillows, pen still in hand, page relinquished.  She yawns and checks the time.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Shit..." Jubilation mutters to herself, standing outside what used to be her room. It's so weird to be out here in the hall like an outsider. She reaches up to take the ornate golden knocker that they got at Home Depot - That One Time - and uses it to announce herself. "Nori.... Nori are you in there?" Her words are slightly slurred, but unmistakably her own.

    Jubes just got back from her adventure in the city. A vampire rave, or so she thought, that had ended in disaster: the Final Deaths of most of the vampires in attendance at the hands of a pair of vampire hunters... and one at the hands of Jubilation herself. Plus, she's coming back full of Drug Blood -- the blood of a human who had taken drugs prior to its collection -- and it's hitting her now.

    "Nori......"

    Instead of going back to her own apartment -- her prison, so to speak -- she's here in the Girls Dormitories banging on Noriko Ashida's door.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko startles awake suddenly, wondering when she fell asleep.  It hasn't even been but some measly seconds, but she checks again.  She groans, hating that she only has a minute display, then realizes that sound woke her up as Jubilation continue to drone in Noriko's superspeedy-just-woke-upness.  Noriko slows down to where Jubilation makes sense.

Blink-it's Jubes-Blink!

Noriko bounds off of the bed, sending everything flying as her foot kicks the tub of pens, and so on and so forth.  She, however, launches herself at the door out of giddy impulse before realizing what she's done.  She speeds herself up but that does nothing but force her to experience everything in slow motion...which, actually ends up helping on the landing...kind of.  She rolls and catches herself with her hands before she totally thunks against the-okay she still thunks against the door.  It's just that she's able to kind of dampen some of the force out of it before she fully collides.

THUNK!...thunk, she lands on the floor.  Then the door opens, Noriko totally on her feet.  "Get in here."  She reaches to try and grab Jubilation's hand so she can pull the girl inside.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "I hope I didn't.... wake you up..." Jubilation drones, offering her hand out for the taking. 'Get in here' is as clear of an invitation to come inside as any vampire has ever gotten, so it's all good! She looks like her outfit was purchased from a Hot Topic that exclusively sells clothing to sluts. A black skirt that's too short. A black top with a neckline that shows way too much. Black lipstick, eye makeup. Her hair is done up in an elaborate up-do with bangs. One of the advantages of being a vampire, she has learned, is that her hair will reset before tomorrow night. No harm in trying things out.

    "I've had.... " Jubilation stumbles in as Noriko pulls her. "...the /worst/..... Night.... Of my...." Life? "....Death." Is she...on drugs? Drunk? What the hell? Jubilee stumbles towards Noriko and manages a big, fangy smile despite saying what an awful time she had. "...Noriiiii..."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko pulls Jubilation in, but Noriko draws her a little closer to keep the girl steady, keeping a hand at her back.  "Kind of, kind of not," which is what Noriko always says.  Her eyes snap over Jubilation's body, taking in her gait, her dress, her new hairdo she knows will be gone soon anyways.  Jubilation's been going through a lot of changes, and it would be difficult for Noriko not to notice how intoxicated the girl is right now.  Which means she drank drug blood?  Or can she do drugs straight?  Noriko doesn't know.  She doesn't care.  Jubilation's high or drunk or something.

"What did you take?" Noriko asks gently, with a soft grin.  "Let's go to the bed," she says before starting to guide them along that treacherous route, letting Jubilation set the pace of 0 to 60, whatever she seems confident in.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "The bed...." Jubilee repeats with a big smile. Noriko didn't say 'my bed,' which is what it is now. She said 'the bed' just like old times. Despite her condition, Jubes makes the journey with relative ease, even blurring a bit as she moves with that vampiric speed! She flops onto the bed, onto her back, and reaches out with both arms for Noriko to join her.

    What did she take? "Oh... I had a /drink/..." she explains lazily. "But, they said it was from this guy who was on drugs. Drug blood. I guess that's a thing!" A thought occurs to Jubes and she's quick to address it. "I asked for a glass!" Jubilee's eyes rise to watch Noriko's reaction to that. She refused to drink from his neck, which unfortunately meant she didn't get to control how much the bartender took from the man...

    "I went to... this vampire...um...party, I guess. Bar? Rave?" She closes her eyes and brings both hands up to cover them. "It sucked."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
The world may see it as her bed, but to Noriko, it's still just as much Jubilation's as it is her's...more so!  Jubes got there first!  But none of this is revealed.  Noriko watches Jubilation blur to the bed and her lips tug into a little grin.  Her turn!

"Hi," Noriko slips in as she slips into Jubilation's embrace before she can even move her arms.  "Oh..."  The speedster's expression isn't any easier to read.  Noriko certainly isn't casual about it.  She looks, pensive, but doesn't say anything.

"So you have no idea what you took...or what kind of blood you had?"  Noriko's mind launches into a spiral of thought around possibly dirty blood in some way.  "Sucked?  Ha...Did you go with someone or alone?"

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation's face sours. "With someone?" she repeats. "Like a date? No! What?" She wraps her arms around the speedster and squeezes, eyes closing. "I just saw it on Twitter and I went... I...." She hesitates, finding some vulnerability in this moment around an uncomfortable subject. "....I wanted to make friends. You know, with... with others like me."

    Jubilee's head lols backwards and her eyes and mouth open. She stares at the ceiling. "...These... these vampire hunters showed up... Killed everyone, I think..." Obviously not everyone. One of Jubilee's legs slides off the bed as she sprawls.

    "They were so mean to me... I thought one of them was my friend...But she's just like the other one," Jubes bemoans. Perhaps an effect from the drug blood, Jubilee's mood starts to ping pong. She leans in and plants a couple of needful kisses to Noriko's neck but then pulls back, distracted by her own misery. She leaves behind some dark lip prints on the speedster's skin.

    "No one likes me anymore, Nori..." she slurs.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Oh..." no that's not what she meant, but Noriko doesn't clarify.  Jubes is already hugging her and it feels so nice and she knows how hard it will likely be to try and unwind this with kiteJubes.  "I want you to have friends, and I wish I had a better idea than to go to random parties but I don't," Noriko admits readily and then lazily swishes her fingers through Jubilee's bangs as if her fingers were blitzing along Jubilation's forehead.

Noriko's belly tenses when Jubilation mentions hunters.  And Jubes thought one was her friend?!  "What?!"  Noriko's trying to make sense of it hen the kisses distract her.  Jubilation pulling back produces a pout.  "I like you."

Noriko pulls away to the edge of the bed so she can reach for her "Pez" dispenser and ever so quickly pops two in her mouth before scooching back to Jubilation's arms before-there.  The "pez" hit.  "So now I can understand you better," she slurs back a little and then laughs, talking faster than she normally does (for the benefit of other people).

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Vampire hunters. "Yeah.... I... same ones from last night. It's a long story," Jubes mutters. It's really not that long -- John Constantine and Phoebe Beacon showed up to the same tip about a vampire meetup in Coney Island and John surrounded her with Hellfire. "But, yeah, they showed up and... ruined the party, I guess." Killed everyone and lit the place on fire is what really happened.

    Nori reminding Jubilee that she likes her briefly pulls the vampire out of this mood. "I know you do..." Jubilation replies with a slight smile. "But, you know what I mean... I... Everyone hates me now." It might not be exactly the way it is, but it certainly feels like that to young Jubilation. She was once the queen bee of this school, but now everyone handles her like she's a wasp.

    "I feel so stupid..." Jubes adds lazily. "I mean, I look /ridiculous/!" She closes her eyes and leans against Noriko. "Look at me. I got all this because I thought it was vampirey. And I was fucking right..."

    As soon as Jubilee hears the crunch of the pills, her eyebrows rise and her smile widens, fangs easily visible. "...Nori..." she says with some surprise. "....I guess you like my outfit, then..." Historically, those pills were used in one very specific context.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"Juubes."  Nori has something to tell you Jubes.  "You always look..."  She grins, eyes half mischief, half dreamy.  Instead of providing a word, she just sighs blissfully.  "I was listening.  I swear."  Noriko reaches out to ruffle her fingers through Jubilation's bangs again and smiles.

"You shouldn't feel stupid.  You're just trying new things.  I mean look, if people are allowed to have midlife crises I think you're allowed to dress how you want whenever you want," she says with a little playful laugh.  "We'll find people who get it.  They may not be vampires but...I mean...I can't be the only cool person other than you in the world.  I refuse to live in that world."  She'd make more people to right that world!  The thought makes Noriko freeze, as if it ambushed her.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Either the drug blood isn't as potent as whatever Nori's on or, more accurately, it's not drug blood at all and Jubilee is falling victim to the placebo effect. Either way, she's not on what Nori's on. She's present enough to get the implication behind Nori's blissful sigh, though. It draws the vampire to lean in and nestle herself in the crook of Nori's jaw, her nose gently resting on the speedster's neck.

    "I don't want to dress like this, Nori. I just thought it was how everyone else would be dressed," Jubilee murmurs. And I was fucking right, she thinks, again.

    Noriko's sweetness causes Jubilation's mouth to curl into a smile. She gives the speedster a squeeze, now just fully cuddling her and totally invading her space. "I think they have to be a vampire for them to get what this is like..." Jubilation replies woefully. If that was drug blood, it's not doing Jubilee any favors to her mood.

    Noriko's description of a world where the only two cool people were them? Jubilee's smile returns at the thought of that. "Not a world where we're the only two cool people. What about one where we're the only people..." Her voice is lazy, harmonious, and dreamy -- tones usually used to evoke a feeling of romance in whatever was said.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"You should just dress how you want to dress.  How you feel comfortable.  Mm."  Noriko's imagining it right now, because she can see that little swagger in Jubilation's step and because Jubilation looks well...yeah, but Jubilation always looks, well, yeah, to Nori.  She closes her eyes happily when Jubilation finds her spot under the speedster's chin.

The speedster just soaks up all of the attention Jubilation bathes on her.  Her eyes crinkle up with her grin at Jubes' squeeze.  It's like Jubilation hit the SQUEEZE ME button.  She reaches up to idly stroke her fingers through Jubes' hair...even if her idle intoxicated attention is probably more like pet-pet-pet-pet-pet as her speed slips away from her.

Pet-pet.

"A world where we're the only people?  Perfect."  She lets her fingers dance skip hop lightly down Jubilation's back.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "I just wanted to look like I belonged there..." Jubilee whispers against Noriko's neck. She says it seriously, lowering her volume as she trusts Noriko with that secret. Jubilation experienced something many teens feel from time to time, but never her: she felt like she didn't belong. She was worried what the others thought of her and was trying, very specifically, to fit in. This is a side of herself that Jubilee only shows Nori. She's the only one who ever knows.

    "Can I sleep here today?" Jubilation mutters hopefully. "I...I don't want to go back to the apartment building." It's a big ask, frankly. Jubilee and Nori could find themselves in a decent amount of trouble if caught.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Although the sentiment isn't one Noriko understands, she does understand wanting to belong, on some more fundamental level.  Her thoughts flash back to being at her family's dinner table for just a moment and she tears herself back to the present.  She focuses on Jubilation, the person she wants to focus on, the person she wants to be with.

Noriko's idly stroking Jubilation's hair, lost in those thoughts when Jubes' question hits her.  "Of course," she says instinctively before Jubes can finish.  It's way too fast to understand, but easy to deduce when she waits for Jubilation to finish and says, more clearly, "Of course."  Noriko knows it isn't just the journey that Jubilation is bemoaning.  That place isn't here.  Even if Nori went with her...even under such risk, this place feels like home with both of them in it.

"You have to let me sneak you out at the drop of a hat though," Noriko warns.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Thunk. Thunk. By now, Jubilation has kicked off each of her shoes -- heavy boots she picked up at the mall just for this night. The Doc Martens she bought for last night, for the same reason, were lost. Long story. She keeps going, totally serious about her intention to sleep here, and slides her skirt down her legs and fumbles that to the floor with a kick of her foot.

    "Thanks," she replies groggily. "You're the best." She repositions herself so she's curled up against Nori again, face buried against her neck and leg hooked over hers.

    "Nori?" she coos softly. Silence. "...Am I a monster?" This sounds like it's a loaded question.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Swimming in the bliss of "pez" and snuggly Jubes, Noriko rests her eyes, perfectly content with the situation. "Mmm?" she says, immediately following her name. "No!" She sounds aghast, her eyes widening out of their sleepy haze and taking on a new intensity as she pulls back to look Jubilation in the eye.

"You are not a monster. Who said that?" Her brow furrows and jaw tightens.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "Those vampire hunters I told you about." And the loaded question reveals itself. "I...I have to tell you something." Jubilee opens her eyes and lifts her gaze. She's so close to Noriko that all she can see is...skin and some blue hair. Does she care? Not at all. "See... They bring this guy over, right... And I can't... You know. I...can't," she explains, knowing that Noriko will understand what she can't do and why. "...And, you know, I don't want to be weird... So...I'm not going to say no..." She shrugs a single shoulder. "I asked for a glass." A reasonable solution.

    Jubilee hesitates, not finding that the words come easily for the rest. She closes her eyes and takes in some air... just so she can sigh it out. "So...They take the guy away..." Jubilation's words begin to slow. "...And they come back with a glass, right?" Jubilee's voice begins to shudder.

    "When the lights came on in that place..." Jubilation mutters. "...I saw that... He was sitting there, the guy -- O Negative -- dead. They cut his throat to fill my glass."

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"They're assholes.  They've probably met a lot of assholes too so it's hard for it not to rub off.  That shit is contagious."  Noriko is speaking a little too quickly, her syllables sliding out in a meandering way.  The drugs make sure Noriko has a difficult time acting like drinking some person's blood, no big deal.  Some other person's blood.  Cool, cool, cool.  She just has this subtle look in her eye and a silence.

"Shit aren't humans supposed to have like 10 pints?  That was a total setup!"  Small muscles throughout her body tense stubbornly as her fingers curl into fists.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "I don't know, Nori! I don't know how many pints they have!" It comes out as a quiet shriek. Jubilee shifts and uses her bent leg as leverage so she can press into Noriko to deepen their cuddle. "Nori... Nori, tell me it's not my fault... I didn't know." She closes her eyes and buries them into the speedster's neck again. She undoubtedly feels the muscles tense.

    "You're... You're upset..." she suggests gently, trying to force Nori to talk about it.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
Noriko isn't as tough as some speedsters, but she can withstand a vampire cuddle, and she holds Jubilation back just as much.  "Jubes...You didn't know.  How could you?"  Maybe she should have thought, but Nori certainly wouldn't.  She can say that in all honesty, but she won't.  Noriko thinks quickly enough to cycle through to the good behavior sometimes.

"I don't like that you're running into hunters.  I don't like that I can't come to these things with you.  People are trying to trick you."  Is Noriko suggesting that even Jubilation in vampire form, dead, might still possess some naivety?  Some strange form of innocence in the childhood of her Death?

The speedster averts her eyes, mind racing over the thought of another person's blood running through Jubilation.  Why does that /bother/ her?  If someone were to ask her, she would know immediately that it is no supernatural hold on her, at least not one of bondage, not a magic known to creatures of the night.

But she knows all of this blood racing is just a symptom of something else.  "I missed you," the stubborn speedster admits, eyes turning down as she realizes how much the emotional charge primes all of her interactions.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "But, Nori... I..." She closes her eyes and plants a chaste kiss on the speedster's neck. "I'm afraid of what might happen to you if you came. I..." She blinks her eyes a couple of times. Shit. The thing that she's afraid might happen to Nori happened to O Negative at that bar. How could she, in all honesty, not know that it was a possibility for that guy? The fact that he had to die to fill her glass took the girl by surprise, but is it really that shocking? Should it be? She really is naive.

    "Listen... Listen to me..." By now, Jubilee has crawled her way to basically be on top of the speedster, looking down at her. A hand comes up to stroke her cheek. "I'm here. I'm here. I... I'm trying the best I can. You..." She's about to say 'you don't know what it's like' but abandons that. Noriko might not know what it's like, but she's the only person so far that's willing to give Jubes the benefit of the doubt.

    Jubilee lowers her forehead to rest on Noriko's. They're as close as they can possibly get, physically, but why does she feel so far away? Jubilation lifts her hand up to her eyes and swipes away the trickle of blood that substitutes for tears. She looks at her finger for a moment and then hesitantly holds it out for Nori, her eyebrows hiked up with curiosity.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
"I know.  I'm just frustrated.  It's nothing," Noriko tries to play it off a little, but she's transparent, knows it, and the fact that she knows it makes her miserable.  But finding Jubilation nearly on top of her with that insistent tone, Noriko can't ignore her.  "I'm sorry.  I'm being so fucking selfish.  You're going through so much," the speedster spits out so quickly before she shuts herself up, resting her head back against Jubilee's.

Noriko's tears aren't blood.  Tiny saltwater rivulets.  She swipes them away, a lot of them in a very short period of time as if she's just fast forwarding through the emotion until the journey of Jubilation's finger capture's her attention, ceasing her tears abruptly.  She stares ever so briefly at Jubilee's finger, her heartbeat hiking up and her gaze swinging back to Jubilation.  No, she is no vampire, and doesn't know exactly what this means, but the intimacy of the offer disarms her.

Noriko lifts her gauntlets instinctually in a blur and then they subside at her sides as she leans, lifting her chin to taste the offered tears, something deeply curious inside herself.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    "No, no, no, no..." Jubilation whispers, her face taking on a look of horror. "Nori, Nori, no." She shakes her head rapidly. "You're not selfish, you're not... I'm not going through it. We're going through this together." They're not just sweet words meant to sooth Noriko's ache. Jubilee means them with all her heart. They're going through this together. Each of them playing their own part.

    The dark red wetness along the edge of Jubilee's finger is offered gently, curiously, but that's it. It's there for Nori to take or leave, but Jubilation says nothing. She just stares down at Nori, her features softening as she watches.

Noriko Ashida has posed:
One hand lifts to cup Jubilation's cheek in quiet understanding.  They are in this together.  These aren't separate journeys.  The other hand remains on the vampire's, her grip tightening suddenly at the little euphoric rush she gets.  She doesn't know...is it because this is Jubes?  Because Jubes is a vampire?  Maybe she's just imagining it.  She doesn't care.  She wants more and sucks the rest off with a sudden appreciation as it warms her all the way down.

"That...what."  Maybe she just really needs some iron.  Yeah.  This shift in her schedule and maybe her diet.  Who knows.  Iron.  "I-" her voice is shaky.  How does explain this?  "Was that what he did or is that just your blood?"  She chews at her lower lip.

Jubilation Lee has posed:
    Jubilation lets her finger linger in Noriko's mouth for a moment before she retracts it, playfully dragging it against the girl's lip. She recognizes Noriko's reaction and smiles, her eyes fully closing as she does. Jubilation's suspicion is confirmed.

    Jubilation shifts a little as she reaches down to grab one of the shoes she kicked onto the floor. It gets thrown at the lamp, sending it to the ground with a crash and the room into darkness.

    When she feels Noriko's hand curling around her own, the vampire squeezes back.

    "No, Nori..." she whispers, leaning in. "It's because of us."