I Ask for Nothing, I Can Get By [OPEN]

[koukai_kirai]

Who: Hijikata and you!
When: July 26th-28th
Where: The Near Shore - Kamakura, Kyoto. (Open to Wild Card options, too!)
What: Hijikata runs himself ragged using his power to bless his faithful; Hijikata tries and possibly fails to take a little care of himself, too (by which I mean he gets drunk and nostalgic at the Gion Festival and that could be either good or bad); catchall for wildcards.

[I. - The Near Shore - Tsurugaoka Hachimangu, Kamakura - July 26th-27th, any time during the day]

[The hydrangeas in the valleys are past their peak, but Kamakura is flush with tourists, all the same.]

[It's not a city Hijikata got to know in his life, but as a god, he's been making an effort to visit as many of his shrines as he can manage (a bit of a tall order for Hachiman of all gods, honestly -- he does have twenty-five thousand of them, and this is one of the biggest ones.)]

[It's a little bit bizarre to watch the worshipers at a distance. Plenty of them are just swinging by one of the big local landmarks since they happen to be in town, looking for an interesting picture or feeling like they probably ought to see such a famous place or something.]

[Others make their way more purposefully to the offering box where he's taken up hanging around invisibly right off the bat. Some of them are just the sort to do things properly, but most of them have something to say to him.]

[Help me find the strength to leave him.]

[I can't fail this test. They'll be so disappointed.]

[Please, let my child grow up strong and healthy.]

[Unseen and invisible, eyes full of a tired sort of compassion, Hachiman stands at his own altar and listens. And when he hears someone asking for the right things -- help me protect him, help me do the right thing, help me stand fast -- he reaches out to them with his power, giving them what he can.]

[He grants his followers resolve, strengthens the best of what's already inside them. To the new parents presenting infants at the shrine for the first time, he focuses on their desire to teach and protect and help their children to grow. To faltering students, he grants focus and motivation. To those facing greater struggles, he calls on the courage that carried them far enough to reach his doorstep, on their love for the things they have to survive for, on the righteousness that can move them past their fears.]

[He pours the strength of his own heart into them, and leaves the rest in their hands.]

[Periodically, he has to take a break, all but collapsing onto a bench in the shade for a few minutes at a time, gulping down bottles of water from a nearby vending machine. It's never for long, though.]

[His people need him. And he's not in the habit of giving any less than his all for the ones who believe in him.]

[II. - The Near Shore - The Kamo River, Kyoto - July 28th, afternoon or early evening]

[After a couple of days of using his power as much as he can manage, even Hijikata knows he ought to take a break.]

[There's reason to believe that this isn't really the way he should be going about it, honestly. Kyoto is a city full of memories for him, and the Gion Festival, stretching all through July, is tied up with a lot of those, too.]

[But he can't just ignore every place he's got memories of, can he? And he can't quite resist the siren call of the familiar traces of his old Japan, from time to time.]

[He veers away from the hustle and bustle of the festival's main drag, but stays near enough to hear it -- the cheering, the bells and the flutes and the drums, the distant rush of too many voices all blurred together. He wanders past one of his smaller shrines, picks up some sake that someone left him, and takes it to the riverbank with him.]

[By the time the sky gets dark and the fireworks start, he's had enough to get a distant look in his eyes, a small smile on his lips that looks outright painful up close.]

[III. - Wild Card!]

[OOC: If you've got something else you'd like to play out with Hijikata, I'd love to hear it! Hit me up at cognitiveleague, PM me, or run it by me OOC on this post, and I'd be happy to work something out and use this post as a catch-all.]

Comments

I

[brynwieldr]

[It's the second day of Hijikata's work that Leo finds him. There's no shrines to Odin here, of course, but it's Leo. He doesn't need that as an excuse to explore the world.

It's not hard to find Hijikata when he collapses on a nearby bench. What is that man doing...]

Hijikata?

[koukai_kirai]

Leo?

[He wasn't exactly expecting him here, on the Near Shore. It isn't as if his company's ever been unpleasant, though, so Hijikata makes the effort to stand back up and give him a lazy little half-bow in greeting.]

What are you doing out here? Sightseeing?

[brynwieldr]

...In a word. I'm bored and Aymeric is busy with other things.

[And maybe he's looking for something to get him.]

Are you alright? It seems like every time we run into each other out here, you're not well.

[koukai_kirai]

I'm perfectly well.

[Or at the very least not emotionally torturing himself the way he sometimes ends up doing on the Near Shore!]

Just overworked myself a little. I'll be good as new once I catch my breath.

II

[freezetheheavens]

[Usually not one to pry into the affair of the others, he doesn't miss the man by the riverbank.

The fireworks start and Toushirou only makes enough noise to alert the other man to his presence. He won't speak up first; there's something melancholy surrounding this man and if he were thinking about something, then Toushirou would prefer not to bother him.

He can wait.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Out of the corner of his eye, the first thing he notices is the stranger's height, as a burst of red fireworks reflects its light and color off of his pale hair. For that brief moment, he's in a different time -- sitting on the roof, his best friend on one side and Souji on the other with his stupid pet pig, the bratty little red-haired page sneaking up onto the roof with them to watch the fireworks burst over the city...]

[It's an illusion that fades quicker than the fireworks themselves. Red gives way to the white that's really there, and he remembers that Tetsunosuke is taller now, or was taller a hundred and fifty years ago, when they were all alive.]

[He's the only one around to remember that night now. It's a sobering enough thought to snap him rather roughly back to reality.]

[It seems rude even by his standards, though, not to acknowledge the young man's presence now that he's been looking at him. He averts his eyes slightly, and nods his head deeply enough to more or less count for a bow.]

Evening.

[freezetheheavens]

[It's easy to get lost in the memories upon seeing fireworks. Even Toushirou himself can't help but reminisce a bit, thinking back to simpler times. However, those times would easily melt away into the horrible memories, bringing forth pain that he thought he had gotten over but didn't.

Once the other greets him though, Toushirou nods back to him in a semblance of a bow himself to greet him.]

Good evening.

[Straightening up, he eyes the man curiously.]

I hope I didn't distract you from your thoughts.

[koukai_kirai]

You aren't interrupting anything important.

[Or at any rate, he could stand to be distracted now and again. People distracting him from his thoughts periodically is the only way he's made it to where he is even half-sane, he's pretty sure.]

[For a moment, he hesitates. The young man looks a bit young to offer to share his drink with, even if he is probably from the Far Shore if he can see him. Instead, he just waves to an empty spot on the riverbank nearby.]

Come for the festival?

II

[theunluckygirl]

[It's different, somehow, seeing everything through the eyes of a 'God' this time around. The haphazard scars at her back proclaiming 'death to amaterasu' don't get any easier to manage, and she's had a hard time forgetting thy were there. It's also hard to forget the people she left behind and her eyes still nervously scan the crowds for Schuldig once in a while, but it's a different god she's come to seek out this time around.

When she does track him down, she hopes it's early enough that he's not too far gone into his drink--she has a feeling he might need to drink more after they talk.

Still, she's hesitant to approach at first-- she's not sure if news of her revival might have reached him yet and she wonders if she first should have sent some sort of message. Perhaps that would soften the impact some?

--Well, she can't spend all night deliberating about this. She clears her throat.]

Mr... Mr. Hijikata...?

[koukai_kirai]

[You'd think he'd be used to seeing ghosts by now.]

[The familiar sound of her voice draws him immediately out of his reverie, and he snaps around to look at her even as he feels the too-familiar twist of guilt in his gut -- failed her, failed her, should have protected her, should have known...]

[His eyes are all too unguarded when he finally catches sight of her -- worried, grieving, full of the fearful and fragile hope that belongs to a man who's been disappointed by hope again and again and again...]

[It's her. It's her, and he feels almost sick with the twin floods of pain and relief. It takes him a moment to even realize that he still can't feel the bond that was there when she was his shinki. So, she doesn't have the name he gave her anymore...]

Jennifer.

[His voice is different from how she's heard it in the past, every trace of gruffness swept away for a moment by the same soft, vulnerable thing that's in his eyes.]

[theunluckygirl]

Oh.

[She's not sure why it is that Hijikata's reaction touches her so-- she knows better, of course, and she knows that after everything they've spoken of he cared for her. Still, it's a bit of a shock, her old memories and feelings colliding with the personality and memories that had started when she'd been a shinki. 'Why does he care?' colliding messily with 'of course he cares' and it makes her head spin a moment.

Her fingers curl uncertainly and she takes a hesitant step towards him, and then another, and then she's broken out into a run and thrown herself at him before she can think to stop herself. It's a childish move that she would've scolded herself for even when she was a child, but it's been a stressful re-beginning and Hijikata had been one of the few solid presences she could rely on and trust in, and certainly had been the only god to mean so much to her. She'd chosen him, after all, and he'd been one of the first to just. Accept her.

She's not crying exactly, but her shoulders are shaking and she's clinging to him tightly. The're both real and here and she's not a ghost or dead (well, not anymore).

She'll apologize for rude behavior later, right now this was needed. Perhaps for both of them.]

I hope you're happy, I finally have post-timeskip icons now

[koukai_kirai]

[For years, he's taught himself to be hyper-aware of people moving near him. The moment before she breaks into that run, he knows it's going to happen, and his body reacts before he can put any conscious thought into it.]

[He lets her barrel into him without resistance and wraps himself around her like a big, heavy blanket, clinging to her just as tightly as he can without worrying he'll actually hurt her, suddenly shaking a bit himself.]

[He's lost too many people not to hold on to the ones who come back. He's done with not letting people know how much they matter.]

I thought... I heard...

[He can't bring himself to say it. He falls silent for a moment, just holding her close to him, hoping that will speak well enough for itself.]

I, 27th

[revolutionfalcon]

[Since figuring out that his home city doesn't exist in this world's version of Japan, Shun's found himself curious about the other ways the country might differ. Shrines at this point just seem like a natural place to start, and it's for that reason Shun finds himself at a major one - this, at least, is the same. He'll look for big differences before he does small ones.

It's difficult to miss Hijikata in his work, though, and given Shun's taking a fairly close look, he has time to watch him drink, work, then drink again. It seems far from long enough given how much he's been doing, though, so Shun heads over to intercept just before the next time he gets up to return to work.]

Sit back down, or all you're going to be giving these people is an unconscious body to deal with. [His tone is as brusque as ever. This isn't something he's ever had much patience for...at least, seeing other people do it.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Hijikata makes a little scoff of vague protest, running a hand through his hair. He's fine, he's good, he can keep going...]

I'll rest again when I need to. I'm fine.

[revolutionfalcon]

[Somehow, Shun isn't convinced. It's the same kind of token protest he tends to make in similar conditions, and he knows better than to trust something like that at face value. Accordingly, Hijikata gets levelled with an unyielding glare.]

You're not going to stay fine working yourself like that and taking the bare minimum time you can to break. And you're not going to convince me like that, either.

[koukai_kirai]

I know my limits. I'm not that damn fragile.

[...Says the guy who literally worked until he fainted right onto the floor and ordered his page to wake him up if he was still out in four hours, not so long ago, but whatever.]

I

[sonofson]

[It's only natural for Goten to zip over and pester the man upon spotting him. It felt like it had been awhile since he last got to hang out with vice commander.]

Are you okay?

[He's never really seen Hijikata looking worn out like this and it's concerning. How Goten happen by him is a mystery in itself but luckily he has a bird's eye view whenever he decides to fly about. He blinks down at Hijikata, floating down but staying just above him.]

[koukai_kirai]

Goten?

[Hijikata blinks up at him, a little surprised to see him here. He takes another gulp of his water, then waves a hand, as if to physically dismiss his concern.]

Fine. Just been working hard.

[sonofson]

[A smile pulls at the corners of Goten's mouth when Hijikata says his name and looks up at him.]

Looks like it. Were you training or something? You gotta be careful if you're doing that sort of thing here.

[Don't blow things up or whatever you do to train. Goten crosses his legs almost as if he's sitting on air]

If I knew you were here I woulda brought a snack for you. You gotta be getting hungry since you're working hard.

i

[spes_phthisica]

[On one hand, he can see that Hijikata is straining himself, pick up all the little signs as if reading him is all he was born to do - and it is. And he's never once questioned why he already knows how.

He feels he ought to scold him, ought to get him to sit down and maybe even have a meal or something. On the other hand, it's hard not to feel that resolve melt just a little bit as he watches. As much as the strain is visible in Hijikata's shoulders, around his eyes, and as much as they reflect the weight of the responsibility placed upon him, Souji can tell that Hijikata wants this. That this, in some strange way is... like a reward? Hard work, yes, but what else would his god accept?

Souji can't explain or put words to it, but the sudden insight has the solid weight of truth to it as it settles in his heart. Giving to people, unselfishly and without consequence, might put a strain on his god's body and mind, but Souji knows without knowing how that it gives ease and solace to something deeper.

So as he walks up and sneaks his hand around his arm, it's only to lean his head back against it and smile softly up at him.]

I brought some food, whenever you want to take a break. But it can wait.

[koukai_kirai]

[It says the sort of thing about Hijikata that he himself never notices, the fact that he's so happy with his reward for a life of hard work and sacrifice being "more hard work and sacrifice, but in a more morally simple situation where I don't have to hurt anyone to do good."]

[It's tiring, yes, listening to so many prayers, and giving so much away through his power. But it's a good sort of tired, and the warmth and admiration he can feel from Souji is like a reflection of the rare satisfaction this sort of work affords him. The more exhausted he gets physically, the more at peace he seems to be, and when Souji comes to remind him that food and rest exist, he's actually got a small smile to show for it.]

In a minute, I promise.

[He turns towards a little old man standing near the offering box with his head bowed, closes his eyes.]

[I know I don't have that long, but if I can stay a few months longer, if I can just stay long enough to meet my grandchild...]

[That's not quite enough as it is.]

[I can't die yet. I won't. I'll get up, and get up again, no matter how hard it is, every morning until they're born and I can welcome them!]

Hm. Better.

[But really, he's wearing low again. As the old man walks away, somehow moving less shakily than before, he turns and puts a hand lightly on Souji's back.]

Are you hungry?

[spes_phthisica]

[It is, in the truest sense of the word, miraculous to see. Souji has seen the powers of other gods and shinki, and it is true that a lot of that looks a lot more impressive in some ways, and maybe some are a lot more effective during battle. But try as he might, he cannot imagine a better power for Hijikata as a person, nor one that he would personally find more awe-inspiring. Isn't it more impressive, really, not to simply solve someone's problem through a flash of light or a magic word, but instead grant them the resolve to handle it themselves, through their own strength? The first solution would always leave a person needing yet more miracles as life went on, but the second would grant them the confidence to tackle life without divine intervention.

Perhaps if Hijikata were a selfish god, the first would seem more appealing; dependent believers had no choice but to cling to their god. But strong believers would pass their strength onto their loved ones, down the generations, along with the certainty that if their strength ever faltered, their god could help them find it again - but he never gave them anything that wasn't already there in the first place.

It's a beautiful thought. It certainly is the kind of faith that works for Souji, and it's probably reflected in his face, as for a moment he completely forgets what he was taling about.]

What? Oh yes, the food. [He laughs quietly, cheeks colouring just a bit.] A little bit - and I think you should maybe sit down for a while too. You can do more once you're rested, right?

II.

[sweetdeath]

[The fireworks are sketching multicolored flowers in the sky above, and the riverbank is the best place to watch them from: Tsuzuki's just visiting Kyoto for the evening, in fact, planning to pick Sakura up some nice tea from one of the shops and enjoy the festival while he's at it. He's got a small shopping bag in hand, and he stops when he realizes the riverbank spot he'd picked out for firework-watching is already occupied.]

Whoa, sorry! I didn't think anyone was down here....

[He trails off as a triple burst of white fire above illuminates the other man. Mostly-empty sake bottle, distant expression? He's down here drinking alone, poor guy. Nobody should have to do that.]

... mind if I sit? It's a great spot for the fireworks, huh?

[koukai_kirai]

[At first, he thinks of shooing the person away, and then he sees who it is.]

[The tense line of his shoulders sags just a little, and he waves the hand without a bottle in it to the mostly empty riverbank beside him.]

Go ahead. The view isn't too bad from here.

[sweetdeath]

Thanks.

[Tsuzuki settles a few feet away, heedless of the threat the riverside grass poses his clothes -- he's wearing a yukata for the occasion, the same plain blue pinstriped one he'd gotten for the firefly festival evening.

Actually, the other man looks a bit familiar. Tsuzuki eyes him thoughtfully, sidelong, as he leans back to look up at the fireworks. It's hard to tell in alternating white-gold-red-blue-green flashes of light, but he thinks he might've seen the guy around some of the Heavens' events. Maybe? He seems to be pretty good with faces.

And on the plus side, if he's wrong and the guy's human, he'll forget all about the weird question before too long.

(It's a little lonely, hanging out with humans. It makes Tsuzuki feel almost invisible.)

He clears his throat.]

... You know, you look kind of familiar. Are you, um. A god? Or a shinki?