Her words rang with almost a sense of foreboding, but Kevin shrugged it off as a drunken anomaly.  In his own mind, Kevin was strong enough to never need assistance, and he was loathe to ask for it.  Should the day come he asked for help without being goaded into it, something must have gone terribly wrong.  Kevin liked plans and orders, living his life by the doctrine given to him.

The borders of his consciousness began to hum, the feeling of intoxication establishing its hold on him.  He let his eyes fall from her face to focus on her throat of all things.  A few seconds passed before he was satisfied that it did not contain an Adam's Apple.  He was mildly paranoid that everyone was not as they seemed in this town.

Feeling bold, he tilted his head back and guzzled down the rest of his scotch, enjoying the burn as is trickled down his throat.  A silly grin spread across his face, "Now, Ms. Amanda.  You aren't going to judge me if I get up and sing will you?"  He looked concerned as to her answer, more concerned than he would have liked to portray but he was two heavy drinks and one shot deep.

In a less than fluid movement, he made his way over to a table that held a song book.  He wasn't drunk as some would claim, just feeling it, and his slowed actions showed the alcohol was just starting to take hold of him.

He had a few ideas for songs he could sing, but he thumbed through the book anyways, trying to see if there was something better.

Amanda knew how kind people in this town could be. The owner of the grill had taken her in when she'd needed a job to pay rent, she'd taken in a hunter at her shop, despite what she was. If everyone just could be nice and not try to kill one another, there wouldn't be any need for hunters or enemies. Not that she was a prime example of good behavior.

"Well, I do like someone who knows their music," she chuckled at his odd question. She wouldn't hold it against him or judge him if he actually did go up there and sing some. She might actually like him more if he did, because she loved a man who could sing. So the redhead followed him to the table, and gently rested her hand on his arm as she leaned to look at the book with him. "See anything good?" she asked curiously.

Bad Moon Rising but Credence Clearwater, The Cave by Mumford and Sons, it was difficult to decide.  He had to impress the girl, even though he knew he couldn't really sing.  "There are a couple of songs, but I'd hate to disappoint.."  He smirked knowing good and well he had a horrible voice, he'd never had a single lesson and had no inherent talent, so he looked for a song that required neither.  There were several out there, songs that everyone knew and didn't care if the karaoke singer couldn't sing.

Feeling tipsy enough to sing a song he knew wasn't plausible he scribbled down a name and a number with the small sheets provided and and entered in his name for a song.  He came back with a shit-eating grin and sat with a thump into the chair.  "Now, pretty Amanda, would you care for another shot?"  His voice was overly forceful as he spoke, the intoxication playing with his volume control. At the moment he didn't care, but it would matter when he took the microphone.

Amanda was curious as to what Kevin would decide on in the end, but she had a feeling it didn't really matter. Finishing up her drink, Amanda watched as Kevin signed up to sing. She was just enjoying the simpler things in life at the moment and that included drinking and having a good time with good company.

She was starting to feel the alcohol herself now, and when she was drinking, she was a lot more touchy than usual. "Gentleman's choice," she said amused, working hard on keeping to her side of the table really. In the end, she ended up, resting her hand once more on Kevin's. It took a moment before she realized what she was doing though and chuckled slightly. "Sorry," she said quickly and moved her hand back away from the other.

Kevin grinned like an idiot, not caring that she'd set her hand on his.  It had sent shock waves through his stomach, the sudden shock of having that special someone tough you unexpectedly.  Even if it was as mundane as a hand on his.  The thought surprised him, the tender feeling in his heart unfamiliar to him.  As best as he could, he ignored the electricity caused in him by her and focused on selecting a song.

With a wink to the beautiful woman near him, he stood up with a scribbled song and stumbled to the DJ that added him to the list, she said it'd be a minute, and Kevin accepted the queue, and sat down motioning to the waitress.

"Now, my gorgeous girl,"  He motioned to Amanda, the intoxication taking hold with silvery claws, "What shall it be this time?"

She didn't know what had caused her to reach out like that without warning. Maybe she was more affected by the alcohol than she'd first thought, but she found that she didn't really mind much after the initial embarrassment of not controlling herself had passed.

"Since you obviously didn't prefer my last choice, it's only fair to leave the choice up to you," she said with a slight grin. She would let him decide and get to know him better that way. Then when he was singing, who said she couldn't help him out a little without telling him what she intended to do. She was a magical being and alcohol did make her a bit more careless about her use of it. Of course, he would never know it was her doing, it would be her little secret.

"So you're really not gonna tell me what you intend to sing?" she asked with a slight pout.

In the moment, he found her pout adorable.  "It'd ruin the surprise, darlin'."  He had been drinking, anytime his words slurred into each other and their endings became muddled his 'backwoods' upbringing reared its ugly head.  Words slurred and feelings became a conglomeration of highs and lows.

Kevin motioned to the waitress and order the shots.  They came in simple, small glasses, a brown liquid perched in each.  "Whiskey, I do hope you don't mind."  This was the substance of his past, and the drink he adored the most.  While tequila made him crazy, he could ride the waves of whiskey forever, dealing with its highs and lows as the intoxication overcame and subdued.

Idly he kept an ear to the song list, waiting for his name to be called up for waiting.  It wouldn't take terribly long.  Not many patrons had shown up that night and only about half would sing at all.  It mostly flipped between the DJ and the patrons.

When he put it like that, she was definitely going to help him in secret, to make him happy. It was a strange feeling, wanting to make someone else happy for a change, but she decided to just go for it and see where it'd lead. It wasn't like he'd ever find out she was the one bewitching either him or the crowd, she hadn't quite decided what would be easier yet. If she was feeling really generous, she might do both.

Noticing that Kevin had ordered whiskey, she couldn't help but giggle slightly. "An excellent choice," she said. Amanda wasn't really picky when it came to liquor. She'd drink pretty much anything as long as it was in good company and gave her that buzz she always sought out when she was drinking. There was no point drinking if it wasn't to have a good time and get drunk. She knew it wasn't very responsible of her and that she should be more careful for her daughter's sake, but she honestly didn't care. She wasn't allowed to have her daughter over night yet anyway or even watch her on her own, so she could do whatever she pleased when she was free.

"When you're done singing, maybe you would come outside for a bit? I'm desperately craving a cigarette, but I wouldn't want to miss your performance..."

((Song: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNy8llTLvuA  ))

Before he had a chance to respond, Kevin heard his name announced with the song he'd planned on singing.  With an apologetic smile, he rose from his seat and quickly hurried to the microphone, nodding to the DJ as he grasped it in hand.  The beat rang out before him, subtle and soft for a few second before the lyrics began.


"It's empty in the valley of your heart, the sun it rises slowly as you woke away from all the fears and all the faults you've left behind.  The harvest left no food for you to eat, you cannibal. You meat-eater you see, but I have seen the same, I know the shame in your defeat. "  The words were soft and sweet as he continued to sing, passion rising.  His voice was not the most trained in the world, he'd had no formal training, but he felt the words in his heart, lending him the passion that bespoke the words.

The chorus was where he really struck chords, tone deaf, but passionate, he belted them out, his intoxication keeping him from caring, "But I will hold on hope, and I will not let you choke on the noose around your neck."  He felt the words like a promise escaping form him, every syllable true and more as he continued to feel the song and let it run through him.

More and more he felt the truth of the words, unspoken prophecy flowing through him.

Amanda was actually slightly disappointed when Kevin's name was called for the open mic like that. She'd wanted to talk more, but now she turned to face the stage. It actually started out pretty good, until he got to the chorus. Giggling slightly, she whispered a simple spell, he had such passion it was only fair that he would do good. She didn't do much, just manipulated the air really to change the sound slightly so it sounded like he was hitting the notes he really was missing. There weren't actually that many things she had to correct, as he had been doing rather well for obviously not having had any training.

As the song progressed, the witch was leaning over the back of her chair, gently twirling a loose lock of hair around her finger, fascinated really by how passionate the human got about his song. The twirling of the lock also served as an inconspicuous way of maintaining her little favor as well as letting on how fascinated she was. By the time the final chords were struck, Amanda was clapping along side other people.

Once Kevin was within reach, she got up from her chair and hugged him. "That was beautiful," she said and kissed his cheek before stepping away slightly again. "About that cigarette..?"

Kevin knew he wasn't much of a singer, though he appreciated compliments and applause.   A little more embarrassed than before, he sat back down in front of Amanda. It felt like the best he'd ever sung, but he knew he wasn't the greatest.  Hearing her compliment made him feel a little better though.

As she mentioned the cigarette, Kevin nodded vigorously, becoming addicted to the pleasurable little sticks during his time in Bitter Springs.  Normally he'd never touch the things, knowing full and well they could cause a painful death, but right now, Kevin didn't care.  He'd taken shots and had scotch.  Not much made sense or felt real at this point.

After her response to his singing, Kevin promised himself to sing more often if this was to be the response.  With a dumbfounded grin on his face he left a hand around her waist after her embrace, "Let's go get thar cigarette babe." In this moment, he was basically hers.  Wherever she went, whatever she did, he hoped to have a place in it this evening. The spell may have been just over the sound waves emanating from him, but he felt something more stir within him.

Nothing made sense this evening it seemed. Amanda normally never used her magic to help others with simple things like their singing, but she'd wanted to help Kevin out. She'd actually enjoyed watching him perform and she felt good when he was done. It especially helped when he seemed pleased with himself for having sung.

The redhead grinned slightly at the hand left around her waist, leaning into Kevin some as they walked outside. Alcohol always seemed to affect her balance a lot more than her speech, so it was actually a relief to have someone walk with her. As long as she could get through the night without letting on that there was anything off about her, she'd do fine.

Getting out her pack, she offered one to Kevin before had to check all her pockets to find her lighter. When she finally found it, she chuckled slightly, though didn't really feel relaxed until she'd lit her cigarette and inhaled. It always felt like she exhaled a lot of her worries alongside the smoke, which might be why she had a hard time actually quitting. At least she smoked less than she'd used to.

Turning her full attention back to Kevin, she couldn't help but chuckle slightly. How could a chance meeting and alcohol make her forget all about her worries for the time being? "So, how are you liking town so far?" she asked innocently as she leaned up to place another innocent little kiss on his cheek.

Kevin simply shook his head at her offer of cigarettes and pulled out his menthol.  At that particular moment, his trusty zippo left him hanging and decided not to light until after she had fished out her own lighter.  Kevin tsk-tsked softly, cigarette in between his lips, "I'll get yours next round, a lady doesn't light her own cigarette."  He brought his zippo closer and let the tip of his cigarette start burning so he could breath in the sweet, intoxicating smoke.

Nicotine had never felt so good, being tipsy and staring at her.  As they stood he tried to be subtle about checking out her body.  The way the stood, the way she held herself drove him crazy, and he wasn't sure if it was just the alcohol, or just her.  He breathed in deeply to calm himself and get some much needed nicotine.

"The town's not terrible.  It's a little slow, and,"  Kevin remembered the last 24 hours, "incredibly quirky."  Boys that looked like girls, men that ran faster than a regular person could...  The town was starting to seem abnormal.  "What keeps you in town?"  His glazed over gaze rose as he watched the contours of her face.

How had she landed herself in the company of such a gentleman? The guys she'd run into so far in this town only wanted one thing and they weren't always nice about it either. Kevin was one of the few who actually seemed to have been brought up properly. She'd even had some guy touch her thigh once because she was wearing a short dress. It disgusted her how men could be such pigs.

"It's almost like you were brought up in a different century..." she said with a chuckle. "Good to know chivalry isn't completely dead," she mused. The nicotine was much needed, she still couldn't believe she'd actually pulled that stunt with the magic and the singing. What had gotten into her today? It had to be more than the alcohol that affected her, she normally never pulled stunts like that.

She chuckled when she heard what Kevin call the town quirky. He couldn't have been more correct. The town was indeed rather quirky. Having another drag of her cigarette, Amanda chuckled again at the question of what was keeping her in town. "Well, right now, you are," she mused as she idly ran her free hand up his chest, resting it gently on his cheek for a moment. "Any other day, I've got familiar obligations in town, and my art shop," she chuckled and had another drag of her cigarette, blowing the smoke away from Kevin. She wasn't drunk enough to tell him she had a daughter. That usually scared people away and she was hardly aiming to scare the man away any time time soon.

When she was done with her cigarette, Amanda wrapped her hands around Kevin's waist, smiling up at him.

---
Hope it works

Kevin had a stupid grin on his face, his eyes starting to glaze over due to alcohol consumption.  His upraising would be harsh in some eyes, but he felt that it helped him grow into a stronger man.  Boarding school tended to be a less than pleasant upbringing, manners, etiquette and fighting.  An odd mixture, but it gave him a sense of chivalry and a spine.  They'd tried to teach him intelligence, but there were times Kevin felt his instructors had failed miserably.  This instance was one of them.

A part of him knew she was being flirty, and he really enjoyed it.  Feeling desired felt good, but a mixture of guilt and decency washed over him.  She was obviously drunk to be getting this close to a man she'd just met.  He thought that perhaps it was not the best idea to have started out with quite so many shots.

At this close distance, though, he could smell her and it was wonderful.  He'd already forgotten about the cigarette in his hand, and let the still burning butt to fall to the ground.  Normally he would have field stripped it and made sure it was properly disposed of; she was just so warm, so close.  His heart beat faster and he felt even more intoxicated than the previous instance.  Blood rushed from his head and he felt that insatiable attraction, the magnetic pull that brought two faces closer and closer.

Manners, etiquette, he didn't care until the very last moment.  He was drunk.  She was drunk.  Nothing good could come from that.  With an exasperating sigh he disentangled himself, using all of his willpower to do so.  He wanted nothing more than to feel her, taste her.  But that would make him a bad man.

He furrowed his brow, still obviously at war with himself.  "You..."  The words were hard to say, his blood still thumping and pumping in his veins, "You are a very beautiful woman, Amanda.  You make a man want to do terrible things."  In an attempt to distract himself from her, he searched for his dropped cigarette, to make sure he threw it away rather than litter the ground.  His own mind berated himself.  Ready, willing, mostly coherent?  What more could a man ask for?  The flip side, was he arrived in town on false pretenses and personal relationships would only complicate the matter .