thenearshore | 012 | The Beach Episode

Entry tags:

012 | The Beach Episode

Who: Everyone!
What: Beach party
When: All day June 5
Where: The beach
Summary: A beach party for all of the Far Shore residents

[01-27 Edit: Continue your threads at the overflow post to evade captcha!]

There were certainly a lot of broken hearts and emotional roller coasters recently, so the Heavens have decided it's time to allow their people to let loose and have some fun for a little while. Through some magic - or possibly just a lot of money - they have managed to rent out an entire private beach for the event so that they won't be interrupted by any Near Shore residents. The beach is beautiful and well-maintained, the ocean goes for as far as the eye can see, and rocky outcroppings offer a handy place to dive into the water on a test of courage.

It's a beautiful summer day, perfect for swimming and cracking watermelons and playing some beach volleyball. There's even some soft music permeating the air so that nothing is every silent on this fun-filled day.

New arrivals, after having been met at the Meeting Hall, would have been immediately redirected to this party. After all, they should be enjoying themselves as well.

Swimwear

ugly

old

weird

Playful Fish

The sea critters are excited about the party too. They're happy to swim up to anyone in the water and will even come up to the shallows to take a look at the fun happening on the shore. Toe nibbling and brushes of scales are in your future, so you'd better get used to the idea if you plan on being in the water.

Barbecue

Some basics have been provided, but everyone has been asked to bring a little something to the barbecue as well if they can. So you're more than welcome to grab one of the many grills and start frying things up. Heck, there are even fishing poles available if you feel like hauling in a few of those friendly fish to grill. Additionally, summery drinks have been provided, including iced tea, lemonade, water, and horribly fruity cocktails.

After Dark

Just because the sun is down doesn't mean that the party's stopping! The barbecue will continue well into the night, lit now by the stars and a huge, roaring bonfire. The bonfire is maintained by Amaterasu's shinki and climbs higher than any bonfire has the right to. Also, there are floating lights in the water so that people can continue swimming now that it's dark. And if you happen to get too drunk to go home, don't worry. A white-clad shinki will be happy to put you back to bed at the end of the night. Additionally, some sparklers and small bottle rockets have been provided for your entertainment.

In Summary:

Get some sun
Go for a swim
Make sure you're in a swimsuit
Enjoy the food and activities
Don't drown
Have fun~

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I'm not certain, it's not anything I'm familiar with. I think someone called it... um, red sea bream? Red snapper? Something red.

[Yurick pokes one of the fillets with his tongs, heedless of an ember rising from the grill to brush his chest near the kanji there. It doesn't even leave a slight burn mark, only a bit of ash.]

This felt familiar, at least. Fishing, cooking them.

Ah, tai? I think "sea bream" is the more accurate one if we're in Japan, "snapper" is a similar fish that lives somewhere else...

[How does he know that? Not a single clue.]

I don't know if I've ever fished before. But you can just... remember how to do things?

[He finds himself staring at that kanji, until he forces his eyes away. He wonders if there's anything he'll know how to do if he tries it...]

Apparently.

[There's that name again, Japan. It's not familiar, not that it would be even if he knew the place in life. But this stranger's accent is very different from his own, so the likelihood of their worlds being the same is slim. The dark-haired boy knows another name for his catch, so... agh, it makes his head hurt, wondering all these things he can't and isn't supposed to remember.]

I've discovered I remember how to fish, weave nets, carve scrimshaw, and summon fire. That last stands out from the rest, somehow.

[Is that dry sarcasm in that last sentence? Oh yeah. But it's not directed at the other boy at least.]

What do you mean "summon" it, exactly?

[Yeah, one of those things is definitely not like the others, in that Yuuri doesn't feel like it ought to be possible. Then again, he's dead, so that's not the biggest shock of his day or anything.]

...I wonder if I'll remember anything like that.

I've no memory of my past, but I have the feeling that my magic is something I've had for a long time. I don't question it.

[He holds up his free hand, which is suddenly wreathed in flame that looks vaguely like a broad-bladed dagger. His skin is completely unharmed.]

I also know it won't harm anyone unless I consider them my enemy. Rather useful, that.

[Yes, he is calmly scraping the skin sides of the fish fillets loose from the grill while his other hand is on fire.]

[Yuuri gasps audibly in surprise as the flames appear, going a little bit pale. It's... almost a sympathetic response, like wincing when you watch a horror movie -- like he's so sure it must hurt that just seeing it is almost physically painful for him.]

[But the stranger's voice is still calm when he speaks again, and his hand looks... fine, under the fire? Yuuri's pulse begins to calm down, and the color gradually returns to his face.]

That's... Uh. That does sound useful.

[Or at least, slightly less terrifying than it would otherwise!]

If I do know about anything, I don't think it's likely to be anything that, uh. Exciting?

Maybe you won't know until you find yourself in need.

[He scoops the fillets onto a platter, though he lays one of each marinade type on the other's heaping plate. They can never seem to get full, so there's no harm in trying to stuff oneself anyway.

He brings his burning hand down onto the grill grid, the intensity of the flame ramping up until the debris left from his cooking is seared away. He dispels the fire with a flick of his wrist and turns to the dark-haired man.]

I'm Yurick. [Yes, another person with a similar name. Life is funny that way, isn't it?] You're definitely new... just arrive today?

[Yuuri laughs. It's a little nervous and awkward, but not too terribly forced.]

Just this morning. Is it that obvious?

[... how strange. Yurick feels the corners of his mouth twitch upward ever so slightly, if only for a moment. That shouldn't happen, not with his darkened mood.]

If only because we've all gone through it at some point. We're supposed to help one another, the old and the new... though I'm not much more experienced in being a shinki than you.

[That's a nice thought, that they're supposed to be able to rely on each other like that. Yuuri doesn't know how much trust he can put into it, but it's nice to think someone's looking out for new shinki as much as they can.]

You seem like you know what you're talking about, though. Is it alright to ask how long you've been a shinki?

[He hasn't really kept track. What's time to the dead?]

A few months, I think? There's a lot more who've been here far longer. And I'm still learning how to use the borderlines shinki can cast.

[At least the name Sora granted him has given him a formidable combat form. A phoenix can move on its own, even independent of its god's guidance.]

Have you met your god yet?

"Borderlines"?

[He really doesn't know anything yet, does he? And he shakes his head at that question, too.]

I'm supposed to be looking for them today, I think. They said I was assigned to Bastet?

It's a barrier we can use to defend ourselves from ayakashi, since we can't kill them on our own. Only a god can do that, wielding us as weapons.

[The sun is keeping the fish warm, so Yurick takes a fillet and breaks off pieces with his fingers so he can eat. It feels more natural than using those sticks he's seen some people use.]

I wish I knew who that was so I could help. I'm sorry. I hope they're a kind god, though....

[Something in his expression clouds at that, but it's fleeting.]

[Yuuri takes that as a cue that he should start eating, too. He tries a bit of the fish with the coconut milk, and it's good, though he finds his appetite a little dulled by that last comment.]

It's alright, I'm sure I'll find them sooner or later. I'll just have to keep my eye out.

...Are most of them kind? I mean, is there a lot of trouble with...

[He's not even sure what, specifically, but being essentially owned by someone unpleasant sounds... horrifying. God, he didn't even think about that before, but now he's more than a little worried...]

[Something about this other shinki reminds Yurick of himself. The quiet demeanor, the obvious uncertainty... those are familiar, but this youth doesn't seem as hardened as Yurick feels. Where such heavy walls came from, the silver-haired shinki can't imagine, but something must've shaped him to be this way.

The other shinki seems far more gentle, though Yurick doesn't automatically dismiss him as weak for it. Sora is gentle, and yet the boy is a god and a force to be reckoned with. Not everything is so obvious.]

... my first god wasn't unkind, but we weren't close. He never even used me in combat. I don't even know what vessel I was meant to be with the name he gave me.

[Why is he telling the newcomer all this? He feels... comfortable talking to the other shinki. It's strange.]

I have a new god now, and he's very kind. From what I know, most are good people, though there's been trouble with a few who seem a bit too drunk on their own power.

[He sounds more disappointed than Yuuri would have expected about not being used by his old god. What's it like, he wonders, taking another form?]

[It does sound lonely, though, now that he thinks of it. To be bonded that way with someone who you don't feel really connected to... It's one more thing for him to worry about until he meets his god, he guesses. What's one more thing on a list as long as his is getting?]

I'm glad you're getting along with the new one, at least. What god are you working with now?

The Heavens call him Baldr, but he told me to call him Sora since it's the name he had when he was human. I believe he's a god of light and beauty, looks like a young boy with rather wild hair and incredibly blue eyes.

[Yurick smiles faintly, though it does little to mitigate his apparently natural gloom.]

I've never met anyone so affectionate and kind... I think. If your god is half as gentle-hearted as Sora, you'll do just fine here.

[From the way Yurick describes him, Yuuri feels like he can almost imagine him -- not all the details of his face or anything, but the way someone like that would smile, the way they must be able to make you feel. He smiles a little, looking down at his plate.]

If anyone should be a god, it should be someone like that, I think.

[Someone kind and warm. Yuuri finds himself somehow a little envious -- it must be nice to have someone to think so highly of.]

I'll introduce you to him sometime, if you like. Even if you're not his shinki, he'll call you his friend.

[Something about the other shinki really does set him at ease, make him almost want to offer friendship when normally he shies from it. His smile warms a little, still sad but almost a touch shy as well.]

Perhaps we can be friends as well, if you'd tell me your name.

Oh!

[Somehow, as they got to talking, Yuuri had completely forgotten about introducing himself. He gets an embarrassed little flush to his cheeks.]

I'm so sorry, I didn't... I'm Yuuri! Katsuki Yuuri.

Yuuri... ah, our names are similar.

[That earns Yuuri a soft chuckle, though Yurick is left to assume "Katsuki" is a family name or something like it. Yurick doesn't have one of those, and he can't recall his parents or hometown to use those as identifiers, so he just has the single name.

Well, that and his vessel name, but he's been told not to share it. Maybe he should've covered it up since it's displayed on his chest for all to see?

He reaches out with one hand as if for a handshake, but instead of clasping Yuuri's hand if the offer is returned, he will gently clutch the other shinki's wrist in a much older form of the modern greeting.]

Don't fret over it, anyway. Consider it part of enjoying the conversation.

[Yuuri relaxes visibly, even though the odd handshake is somehow surprising. He tries to mirror it, grasping Yurick's wrist lightly in return.]

They are similar, aren't they? That's a funny coincidence.

Perhaps it's a sign we were meant to meet.

[Okay, why did that sound pathetically sentimental? Is he normally a sentimental person? He thinks... he might be, but in a more private way? Ugh, all these months and he's still trying to figure himself out in something other than fits and spurts.

He releases Yuuri's wrist and finds himself happy for the first time in months. When did he let himself relax this much?]

I'm... not usually one to make friends easily. A few people have called me an "introvert," whatever that means.

For all I know, it could be.

[Man, wait until he meets Yuri.]

[It feels... like a lot of trust, for someone who doesn't make friends very easily to be so warm towards him. In a way, it's sort of humbling, like being given something that he's not sure what he did to deserve. But in a nice way, certainly.]

Well, I think there's something to be said for that. I think some people have an easier time relaxing without too many people around... At least, it sounds like it would be easier that way.

But... making friends once in a while can be nice, too, I'd imagine.

[Without any memories, it's all sort of speculation, isn't it?]

[Or perhaps it's simple loneliness that can't be soothed by Yurick's god, only another shinki. They have no anchors to their pasts, only what they forge from the moment they awaken in the Far Shore. That's something a god can never understand. Yuuri is kind and gentle, Yurick can tell that easily even from this first meeting, without pushing or being overbearing. It's doesn't feel like a chore to socialize with someone more like Yurick himself.]

I get the feeling I was never one for crowds. My god had to practically drag me here. That's why I decided to go fishing earlier, it's a solitary activity.

[And cooking probably would've stayed solitary but he'd caught so many fish and there were people who looked hungry....]

I... hope we can call one another friends someday. Even if it's too soon now, we're off to a good start, wouldn't you say?

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latebloomingeros - 2017-02-07 02:44 (UTC) - Expand

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012 | The Beach Episode

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(BTW if you're not canon familiar, Yurick sounds very British)

(I'm totally not, so thank you for letting me know :D)

(And I am SO THRILLED to be tagging with Yuuri, thank you!)

( :D I'll try my best to do him justice! )

(He seems to attract silver-haired guys, doesn't he? XD)

(That's his secret superpower. ;) )

(... I will make my brain behave by not letting it picture these two being cute together.)

( Brains can be terribly uncooperative about these things.)

(They can be adorable pessimists together. Bond over insecurities. BFFs in tears forever.)

(Yes, excellent :D Yuuri doesn't have enough friends who understand casual despair.)

(They can share a paper bag when they hyperventilate.)

(The true meaning of friendship!)

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