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Kiki laughed a little and blushed as Sym knelt down proposal-style and held out a hand. She shook her head and sighed, placing her hand in Sym's and grinned, a lopsided sort of bashful smile. "Well...hrm. Those are good suggestions. Maybe we should do a song that's already a duet... and since Seether seems to be a bit popular, what about 'Broken'? That's a pretty good duet, and I think you've got a good voice for Amy Lee's part." She said, looking a little sheepish. It was one of the few more modern songs that she knew.

Ikkaku thought about this a moment and shifted a little uncomfortably in his seat. Yeah, it was a good song, and he was sure that Sym and Kiki could do it justice but...well, it was also a a very romantic sort of song. He glanced a little nervously at Sym, taking another shot of sake. What was wrong with him?? He'd hung out around her ever since she came to the division, why was he getting so mushy-gushy now?? He glanced at Yumi but didn't want to subject himself to the teasing to come if he actually were to say something to the man or ask for any advice.

If this got any more ridiculous, he was just gonna have to come out and say something to Sym. Sure he'd rather pull his toenails out with rusted pliers but it had to be better than getting himself trashed and wondering how good of a kisser she was.

The song was lovely, and Sym did have a good voice for Amy Lee's vocals. Kiki's voice couldn't have been mistaken as a man's for the masculine part, but the low, soft alto was a good counterpoint to Sym's higher pitched voice. All in all, they seemed to be quite a hit in the restaurant and Kiki didn't mind the fact that Sym was much more huggably adorable than she was. She wondered briefly if she should step in when the smaller girl was getting mobbed and (potentially?) groped, but between the growling threat of Sym herself and the ominous reiatsu rolling off of Ikkaku in the back of the room, even the drunks got the picture quickly. The brown haired girl used the ensuing chaos to escape back to the back of the restaurant while 'Bad Girlfriend' started up and the whole place turned into a dance party. She glanced at the shop owners apologetically but the little old couple that ran the place didn't seem to mind and were, to Kiki's great surprise, shimmying behind the counter with one another. Seemed like everyone was getting into the spirit of things.

Given that Kiki had absolutely no sense of rhythm and couldn't dance her way out of a wet paper sack, she felt it was much better to hide in the back and hope no one asked her to dance. That of course meant hanging out with the older captains, though she felt a small stab of disappointment as Kuchiki-taicho announced that he was going to be leaving. She didn't try to stop him; it really wasn't his scene after all. Still, she was rather sad to see the man go. "Ne, it was very nice of you to come, Kuchiki-taicho. Thank you for coming to the party." She bowed her head to him politely. "I'll take care of your drinks, don't worry."

Ukitake and Kyouraku looked at one another and then back at Byakuya and the bowing Kiki. "Ahh, but Kuchiki-san! You should stay and keep Kiki-chan company while everyone else dances!" Ukitake was quick to intervene, hoping for romantic entanglements (and a free dinner every week at Kyouraku's expense!). The brown haired captain's eyes narrowed slightly as he smirked at his white haired friend, obviously seeing Ukitake's ulterior motive.

"Yare yare, don't waste your breath, Jyuu-chan! You know this isn't Byakuya-kun's type of scene. He's probably having a miserable time, drinking cheap sake and watching cute girls sing karaoke. He has much more refined tastes than we do." Kyouraku's eyes danced with teasing mirth, having far more fun baiting the stoic heir to the Kuchiki house than he probably should have been, being older and (questionably) more mature. Kiki blushed a little and cut a sharp look at the two of them, wondering if someone had spiked their sake with Everclear or something.

Ikkaku sat at the table, arms folded, glaring at his sake cup as if it had done him some grave wrong. It hadn't, being empty not withstanding, but it was easier than glaring at everyone that WAS dancing with Sym when he wasn't. How revolting...he was really getting all mushy-gushy fast, huh? He glanced over at Yumichika and groaned inwardly. The expression on the feather browed man's face was wickedly pleased and didn't bode well at all for Ikkaku. There was a moment of stillness where Ikkaku was silently begging Yumichika not to do it, while the purple eyed man simply smiled mysteriously. Then the moment was broken and Yumi was standing up, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Sym-chan! You should save a dance for Ikkaku! He's awfully lonely over here!" The bald man wanted to try and tackle his friend and beat him into oblivion but the damage was already done as everyone's eyes turned to look at Ikkaku. He felt his whole face go red, from his neck creeping up his face to the very tips of his ears. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Clearing his throat in a decidedly non-manly way, he cut a glare at the rest of the room.

"Yeah? What? Tch, think I wouldn't want to dance around with a cute girl too? Whaddya idiots lookin' at? Oi! Sym, get over here and dance with me, yeah?" He said, hoping he sounded tough enough to not get laughed at.

Ikkaku thought that maybe this was a bad idea. After all, Sym was a very good dancer and well...unless it was his luck-luck dance, he wasn't. Not by anyone's stretch of the imagination. He moved a little awkwardly as Sym danced more in front of him than with him, feeling rather rigid and trying not to bump into her or get too close, or put his hands anywhere inappropriate, or look down her shirt, even accidentally, or step on her feet, or breathe in her face and subject her to noodle-and-sake breath... so many things to worry about! He couldn't relax enough to even enjoy dancing! The song was good though, definitely something he could get behind. Chaos, mayhem, fighting, drinking...written for him, it seemed!

Kiki blinked a little as Kuchiki-taicho stated that he would stay and dance with her, feeling herself go a bit pale. "Err...th-that's real nice of you to offer, Kuchiki-taicho but um...well I... I don't... I can't..." She sighed, growling a little and folding her arms. "I dance like a three legged paraplegic ox, to put it mildly!" Kyouraku couldn't stifle a snort of laughter, shaking his head a little. Ukitake grinned behind his cup and did his best to not laugh at Kiki's very accurate assessment of her dancing skill. She'd made the mistake of attempting to dance three years ago at a party. She'd wound up wearing some poor person's sangria and sprawled across a complete stranger's lap with a sprained ankle because she apparently thought that "dancing" and "flailing around like she's having a seizure" were synonymous.

Not be so tense? Maybe she shouldn't rub his damned shoulders then! His back straightened and he barely managed to stifle a yelp as she tried to make him loosen up. Ha ha, joke was on her, feeling her touch him just made things worse! He whimpered inwardly; she was going to drive him absolutely insane! It was rather like the old saying "What has been seen cannot be unseen." And now that he was seeing Sym as a very attractive woman instead of just his squadmate, that whole paradigm shift couldn't be undone.

He was gonna kill the entire freakin' group for this s**t.

When she came back to stand in front of him, he tried to look anywhere but at her. The blush wouldn't abate and he wondered dimly if it was possible to die from exsanguination if all the blood wasn't gushing out but just permanently stuck in his face. It was at least something to keep his mind off of the fact that he was sure he looked like a raving idiot at this point. "Umm...you're a good dancer." He said, and could have smacked himself for sheer stupidity. Well of course she was a good dancer! The entire goddamned restaurant knew she was a good dancer by now! "Sorry, I'm not used to...well, dancing with a partner." He amended lamely, hoping she'd take pity on him and just tell him to shut up.

Kiki stared at the proffered hand a moment with no small amount of trepidation. She glared at the two captains who were currently nearly pissing themselves in laughter. Ohh, she was going to put something vile in Kyouraku's hair later. No one could ever really be evil to Ukitake though, he was just so nice and it was so easy to just blame it all on Kyouraku anyway. She was sure that Nanao-chan would help her out; the girl practically begged for ways to punish her lazy captain. Still, the problem at hand was still, well, at hand. Literally. She swallowed hard and placed her hand in Byakuya's, standing up and feeling her knees knocking a little. Ohh this was going to bad. This was going to redefine 'bad' for an entire generation. She may as well make her piece now; she was sure that if she stepped on his feet or something, he was gonna use Senbonzakura and turn her into fish food.

"Well okay...but don't say I didn't warn you, taicho."

Ikkaku let the smaller girl drag him out of the shop, not entirely sure how he was going to answer her question. Hell, he didn't even know HOW to answer her question and not seem like a weirdo. "Oi, Sym... " he started, not knowing where to go with this. Probably better to just be honest. "It's really awkward dancing. Y'know, cuz I don't know how and all. I mean, my luck-luck dance is one thing. That one's badass. But...well, it's different dancing with a girl. And I was all worried and stuff about stepping on your toes or grabbing you someplace that I shouldn't. And..." He took a deep breath, hoping he wasn't about do something that was going to get him killed. "And it always makes a guy nervous to dance with a pretty girl, 'specially one he kinda...well, you know...might like." He swallowed hard, the blush not fading even now that they were outside in the cooler air.

Kiki was certain that this whole dancing idea was doomed to failure. It didn't help that from the moment that Kuchiki-taicho had taken her hand and led her out onto the floor, her heart had been going a million miles a minute. And then he'd placed his hand on her hip, which hadn't helped her erratic heartbeat any. After all, he was handsome and refined and noble, a little stiff and cold to people but that was to be expected. But still, it definitely made her insides squidgy when he slid his hand to her lower back and pulled her hand to his shoulder. He stepped forward, and she stepped back, her knees feeling very watery as if she was going to collapse at any moment. Ohh, this was dangerous business right here!

Ukitake watched the two gleefully, anticipating all the delicious dinners he'd be having at Kyouraku's expense. The brown haired captain grumbled a bit, but seemed genuinely pleased watching the couple. "Yare yare...are you going to gloat all night about fried shrimp, Jyuu-chan?" He admonished his friend jokingly, shaking his head. "They do make a nice couple, don't they?"

Ikkaku raised his head from where he had been looking at his feet rather bashfully, eyes widening a little. "Y-yeah? I mean, well ya shoulda said something, so I didn't feel like some crazy perv for likin' my teammate!" He grumped at her, though he seemed singularly pleased if the pinkness that persisted in his cheeks and ears were anything to go on. Awkwardly, he grabbed her hand and leaned down, looking rather unsure on what to do, but figuring that confessions like these had to have something to seal the deal. She had kissed him on the cheek enough times for him to know that wasn't the most romantic gesture that one could make, but damn it all if he knew what to actually do in this situation. "So uhh...am I allowed to kiss you now or what?"

Kiki jumped a little as he leaned in closer to her, startled out of her concentrated glaring at her feet, daring them to step on Kuchiki-taicho's noble toes. She paled slightly, feeling a bit lightheaded and queasy-nervous, like her stomach was doing flip-flops even as the rest of her was quite sensibly grounded. Stupid stomach. See if she bought it any good kimchi again! She pulled her right foot back to meet her left foot, wobbling a moment from the shift in her center of balance but staying upright. If this was all it was, she was (fairly) sure she could handle it. But things never stayed this simple long. Eventually he was gonna try some kinda spin or dip or something like that and she was going to end up knocking him into the table or kicking his shin by accident or any number of horrible, terrible ways that things like this could go wrong.

She just hoped that when she did inevitably mess up, he didn't Senbonzakura her into fishfood. That would suck. A lot.

Ikkaku snorted, but a slight smile appeared on his lips. "Tch. Yeah right. We're in the 11th, kid. We'll just kiss while we train." Her hand felt nice in his, small and slender, but strong, callused, like a hand that wielded a sword well should feel. His mouth seemed to tingle after she kissed him, and that wink was positively wicked. His smile turned to a huge grin and he pulled her back into the noodle shop and to his seat, sitting down and pulling her to sit on his lap again. "Alright, listen up! Sym don't sit on anyone's lap but mine anymore, got it ya perverts?" He glared at Renji, Kira, Hisagi and Kyouraku to hammer his point home, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her back against his chest. Those four were the ones most likely to try and violate the new policy Ikkaku was determined in laying down, now that he had declared his...well, they hadn't discussed intentions, but he certainly didn't want Sym sitting on anyone else's lap other than his!

Kiki glanced up as Ikkaku and Sym came back into the room and gave a surprised hoot of laughter and flashed her bald friend a grin and a thumbs up. She'd just met Sym, but the two seemed good together. She looked back up at Byakuya and grinned a little sheepishly, rubbing the back of her head. "Ne ne, Kuchiki-taicho... I wasn't good. You're just a hell of a good lead, that's all." She glanced out at her friends still gathered at the table, drinking and eating and laughing, then back up at him. "You still going to be heading out?" She asked softly.

Ikkaku glared at the assembled drinking group and snorted, turning his gaze balefully on Matsumoto and Renji. "Che...Like I would be lookin' for something like that! You think I walk around Seireitei and just expect girls to swoon over me and fall at my feet? I'm not an idiot. If Sym likes me, it's cuz she's the exception to the rule. I sure as hell ain't gonna make assumptions like that." He glanced away, disliking to admit such an insecurity but well, there it was. He sure as hell hadn't expected Sym to like him, and he was grateful, if a bit confused, that she did.

Renji shook his head and sat back in his seat, smiling a little at his friend's lack of confidence in his attractiveness. Then, with a wicked grin, he reached over while Ikkaku was distracted (and blushing slightly, how cute!) and snagged Sym, pulling her into his lap. "Well, you've got your assignment now, huh? Gotta work on making ol' Ikkaku feel all loved and needed!" He grinned, watching Ikkaku's face harden as he snuggled Sym. Matsumoto, never one to let a chance to cuddle or piss someone off pass by without being fully exploited, grinned and snatched Sym out of Renji's lap, kissing the girl's cheek and fluttering her lashes at Ikkaku.

"That's right, Sym-chan! Our Ikky is so very sensitive, he things he's unlovable and unattractive! That's why he didn't realize you liked him, he didn't think he was worthy! Ohh, how adorable! You've got to spoil and pamper him rotten, you know?" She grinned as Ikkaku decided he had enough and grabbed Sym around the waist, settling her back down into his lap and giving the laughing group a downright evil glare.

"Oi!! That's enough, back off! Tch, what did I just tell you assholes??" He grumped, resting his chin on Sym's shoulder, feeling more than a little bashful about the conversation going on around them.

Kiki glanced up at Byakuya and blushed, looking a little uncomfortable at his mention of her noble birth. "Yeah, well...don't spread that around, okay? I'm not exactly trying to broadcast that kinda thing if you catch my meaning." She'd always been a bit reluctant to disclose that sort of information; she had seen how differently people treated those who were of noble birth. She'd managed to keep it pretty hush-hush from her friends, and the last thing she wanted was to have everyone start acting like she was putting on airs or somehow better than they were...or to think that she thought that way.