Play Games With Me

Kinone was troubled. Troubled, conflicted and annoyed.
She hadn't known what she had expected from this island, but she certainly had not expected to find actually nice people, and even friends. All the stories she had heard in Hongkong had been along the same lines. That Manta Carlos was full of strong, rude brutes and, you had to be on your toes constantly so you didn't get cursed by the ability to only talk in farts if you looked at someone the wrong way.
Kinone's caretaker, the old witch, had been the only one to mention something positive about the place. That it was a diverse, relatively warm place with good and bad people and a balance that was sturdy but easy to slowly eat away from. But those words had drowned under all the bad people said about the place.
Kinone agreed with the old witch now. This place was indeed diverse, and...warm. It was warmth that Kinone didn't trust. But it was also so easy to trust it, envelop yourself in it and drift along with the island's pace. Kinone had been switching between those two for almost a month now. Sometimes she almost forgot why she was there in the first place.
The gang wanted her head on a platter.

Now Kinone stood on Tai's cloud, in her thoughts and frowning slightly. She looked down at Tai. The guy was one of the people Kinone could call a "friend". But she couldn', wouldn't, call anyone in this place that. Not outloud, not in public. Only in her mind.
At first Kinone had been on her toes at the island. She had stayed inside or hidden, and observed. The place had seemed civil enough so after few weeks Kinone had talked to someone for the first time. That someone had been hotplate and ape brain over here. She was debating whether she regretted it or not.
Kinone had ties now. She cared about people here. It had been a surprise for her too. After all, it was the first time that Kinone actually tried to act nice without any particular goal. And the result had been that she actually enjoyed being among these people. Being with Tai. It was confusing beyond belief. Kinone didn't like it. These people could be used against her when the gang found her. And they would find her. Kinone knew that.

They arrived at their destination and Kinone felt a feeling she had felt often these days. She enjoyed herself, was looking forward to something. Hell, Kinone even looked forward to work nowadays, when she could chat with Remi and Tai. This island was messing up Kinone's pace.
Kinone jumped down from the cloud and prepared the grin she had perfected during the years in the gang. It looked genuine, no matter what mood Kinone was in. But now it really was genuine. Kinone was worried about how easy it was for it to be genuine.
Kinone turned to grin at Tai.
"Okay, let's do this. As always, I'm famished."

@Goblin

"They better be good, or this whole thing is a scam."
Kinone snickered as Tai praised the place's wings and mozzarella sticks, and her stomach actually growled. Kinone ignored it, as it was a common occurrence, and raised a brow at Tai opening the door for her. But she just huffed, amused, and went in before him.
Kinone had been to arcades before but this place was just as Tai had described it. Like a Chucky cheese for adults. That was such a weird idea but Kinone couldn't help but love it. Especially since there weren't kids running aroud all over the place. Not that Kinone hated kids or anything but good to get a break from them once in a while.

Kinone slid into her own seat, dividing her tail into eight smaller ones so sitting was easier. She grabbed a menu too and fanned herself a bit as Tai talked to her. Kinone grinned a bit and actually opened the menu.
"Hey, I might be broke but I can't turn down an offer for good food. And I guess the company is bearable, especially if the wings are as much of killer as you said."
Kinone snickered and skimmed through the menu, and ended up ordering the same as Tai, plus some cheese nachos and a huge coca cola with bunch of eyes. She didn't feel like drinking alcohol right now.

Kinone didn't quite rub her hands together as their food arrived but her eager smile was the equivalent of that, and a couple of her tail swayed in anticipation. She wouldn't have been surprised if Tai had said she was drooling.
As the food was set before them Kinone quirked a brow at Tai, a smug expression on her face.
"I guess we'll see whether I can handle it or not, right?"
Kinone humphed a bit just as cockily and didn't immediately start eating her wings, instead sipping a bit of coke. So she had the pleasure of watching Tai get red and sweaty because of the spicyness and she grinned.
"Not only weak of mind but weak of tongue as well, huh? Let me show you how it's done."
And without second thoughts Kinone dug into her wings. Obviously they were spicy and Kinone let couple of her tails twitch a bit. But her face remained calm as she ate the spicy sons of bitches with composure. She grinned smugly at Tai, and although she had eaten as many spicy wings as Tai her face was only a little red and there was no sweat in sight.
"Try eating food in Hongkong. That's the place where all the too spicy food from China goes to die. This is nothing."
Kinone almost immediately internally slapped herself for saying that. She basically just told Tai where she had lived before. Fuck!

Kinone chugged her coke and let out a big, content exhale. This felt good, and Tai was right. Under all the spicyness, and because of it, the wings were pretty fucking good. Kinone dug into her cheese nachos and made the notion they were good as well. And the cheese did just the right thing to her scorched tongue.
"Whip my ass at arcade games? Keep dreaming. If that actually happens I need to leave the island out of dishonour. I'll be leaving a new high score behind me."
Kinone snickered and drank some more coke. She didn't like being drunk, but she kinda hoped Tai would at least get a buzz. It was so entertaining to hang out with intoxicated people. It was full of surprises.