[CLOSED]

[tsuku]

Who: Otegine tsuku, Flynn choseneutrality, and Mikazuki heiancrescent! 
What: Prayer #10
Where: Two places: A garden by an apartment complex, and... a gift store?
When: Late March, so 3/24
Warnings: None, hopefully

The owner of the prayer is a single mother whose daughter disappeared more than a year ago. There are a lot of local rumors as to what happened- some say that she ran away to pursue a career in a bigger city, others believe she might have been kidnapped. Regardless of what's the truth, there were efforts to look for her in the past, but the neighbors eventually moved on with their busy lives. They have tried to convince the mother to give up, as her health is worsening. Still, she made that prayer to have the hope in remembering her daughter. 

Comments

For Flynn

[tsuku]

[ There's a plot of land just outside their apartment where the mother and daughter would grow flowers for spring. In the past year, it became a memorial of sorts for the missing daughter, and people who heard about about the sad story would leave gifts and cards on the garden.

Now it's a mess, with withered plants, trash, and weeds. If there's some way to comfort the poor woman, this may be a start, as she hasn't been able to clean up this fond place. After she leaves for work in the morning, this god and one of shinki get to work on that prayer. ]

I can't believe I'm doing something like fieldwork again...

You don't have memories, but gardening is manageable, right? It's easier than flower crowns, I promise.

For Mikazuki

[tsuku]

[ Okay Jiji, you get to do this part of the job with Otegine, because even if you're an amnesiac, he doesn't trust you with that, if his memory serves him right. So, with a modest budget (thank you Heavens), they are doing some shopping.

...This is supposedly a popular store for girls, and supposedly the missing girl was very girly. But this is almost too much for a former weapon spirit in how cute everything is. Oh right, they should get cards and something to leave as gifts. This can't be that hard. ]

Okay, we need to pretend like the lady's daughter hasn't been forgotten, so we're getting stuff to leave for her daughter. Do you have any ideas for what to get?

[ He was owned by a lady once, so maybe Jiji is somehow in touch with his feminine side. ]

[choseneutrality]

[The garden was a right mess and the signs of not being tended were clear as day. Not that Flynn was an expert in such things and, like Otegine said, he had no memories of his life at all.]

I believe so. Where should I begin?

[As long as there wasn't anything that required a certain amount of delicacy like what had been needed with the flower crowns he would be fine.]

[heiancrescent]

[If Mikazuki didn't know how stores worked back then, he certainly wouldn't know how to magically shop now either.

Everything in here seemed... warm. In a human way. Bears and cute mugs and small trinkets that would be nice on shelves.]

Hrmmm... How about this? [A western-style tea set, complete with pot, cups, milk jar and sugar pot. They are adorned with blooming pink roses that give off a sense of generic cuteness despite the lack of originality.

Something practical as well as lovely. Hideyoshi was fond of tea ceremonies, and this would look like something that a European trader may have given in return for Nene's trademark hospitality.]

[tsuku]

That's quite cute! A tea set might be weird on its own because it's a fancy thing, so let's keep looking.

[ Oh, and the price tag isn't too bad when Ote catches a glimpse of it. He isn't surprised that Mikazuki would pick that, now that he thinks about it. The old man sitting out on the porch of the citadel... Otegine's seen it so often, it's an easy picture to come to his mind. ]

Hm, some tea, too? The lady might appreciate it, that stuff is supposed to be calming, right?

[ He'll get some for Mikazuki too, and maybe Flynn would like to try some. ]

[tsuku]

Pull out whatever's dead-looking, like old stems. Trash too, if that gets in the way.

[ Otegine hands Flynn some gardening gloves. Hopefully they'll fit alright, he found them in the utility closet of the landlord. ]

Flynn, are you doing alright without your memories? This world is usually nice even with ayakashi about, at least.

[ And unlike what Ote has seen of your memories, buddy. If only he could ask... ]

[choseneutrality]

[Pull out old stems or trash. Okay. That definitely sounded like something he would have no problem doing. Flynn accepts the gloves and pulls them on, taking the time to remove his gauntlet and set it in a place where it wouldn't be in the way and he wouldn't lose it.

He turned back around to face Otegine.]

I am... doing well enough without them.

[heiancrescent]

[Kitsch as it is, what matters is that it looks cute. Such is the taste of an old man indeed.]

That does sound lovely. Some snacks to go with the tea would be good as well.

[Like tiny, delicately-crafted pastries. Something along the line of generously frosted cupcakes with those tiny garnishes, or cookies stacked up in large glass jars, and a light, but fragrant tea. He feels spoiled for choice in the Near Shore.

It's like Mikazuki never lost his memory in the first place.]

[tsuku]

That's good!

[ Otegine's going to help out by weeding. It's early in the year, so weeds are manageable at this point. There's a whole lot though... at least that means the soil is still fertile? ]

That gauntlet of yours looks really different. You probably don't remember much behind it... but you do wear it all the time.

[choseneutrality]

[Flynn also kneels down and begins to pull out weeds. It's not that hard, just get a good grip on them and give a small tug and the weeds are out without a fuss.]

It feels right for me to do so.

[A habit that carried over maybe. He grabs another cluster of weeds and pulls only he's met with a lot more resistance this time. Another pull, this time harder,
leaves him with a weed and huge clump of earth.]

[tsuku]

If we do that for the lady, we should leave them where she could fine them, they'll go bad otherwise.

[ Otegine has in his arms a parent-child pair of stuffed toy rabbits, with a rounded, stylized design (you could tell what they are by the petal-shped ears and pompom tails) and matching ribbons. They're for the mock "offering", but he seems more caught up with what Mikazuki suggests. They're very old-manlike things to prompt, but it's very much like what Otegine would imagine the old Mikazuki would enjoy back at the citadel. ]

You... still have your old tastes. I'm glad.

[ Otegine smiles a little sadly, saying that without even realizing it. It's not breaking the rule, so it isn't hitting off the god's red flag. ]

[tsuku]

I figured, so I bet you'll take good care of it

[ He sees the big weed and chuckles. ]

Ahaha, careful there... you have a surprising amount of of strength for a young guy.

[ Otegine's not good with estimating ages (he's a few centuries himself, and it's not like tsukumogami lives follow good rules on aging), but Flynn looks in his late teens, like the students he's used to seeing around the town in school uniforms. ]

It's easy to break off the earth from the roots, so don't worry about it. We just don't want to run out for the rest of the plants.

[heiancrescent]

[Mikazuki gives both rabbits a pet on the head. Soft, very soft. Unconsciously or not, those are what he thought of when nostalgic and heartwarming. Like an old home with a mother should feel like.

The statement draws his attention immediately, and he tilts his head to comprehend.]

Is this perhaps too old-fashioned? [He says, looking at a glass tea set that would fit better in a 21st century home.]

[choseneutrality]

[Otegine wasn't wrong in that assessment. Flynn begins to knock off the excess soil, letting it fall back onto the ground. All right, this wasn't so bad.]

Are there any other weeds like this one?

[tsuku]

[ It's cute to see him pet the rabbits. There's that story about the rabbit on the moon, so maybe that's what makes this scene charming (with Jiji as the spirit of the moon or something cute like that)? At least the they're definite "yes" to the shopping cart. ]

Huh, I didn't mean it like that! Your tastes are just fine, Mikazuki. I do like them.

[ Shaking his head firmly. Just now, he realizes that it probably sounds odd for a tachi who didn't know those were his tastes back then. While he's happy to have Mikazuki as his Shinki, he feels like... no, he really should be careful how he phrases things. ]

I... actually would want that for myself. [ It has a simple design that puts the focus on the tea inside... he wouldn't know if glass is ideal for holding tea, but it does seem pretty. Also, if it were to break, Ote's powers as Caerus make it completely fixable. That's a plus. ] That may be my godly affinity for glass speaking of all things, but... let's think of getting that one later.

[heiancrescent]

[The rabbit on the moon, being the only companions to the immortal Chang'e. Cursed by her own blessing of eternal life, which makes the image a little less saccharine. So they're a must get.

Some things just never change even without memories.]

We killed two birds with one stone. [He chuckles.] Come to think of it, I've never really seen it.

[Mundane utility at its finest!]

[tsuku]

There's probably a few like that when the lot is like this...

[ Otegine's been going after the small-fry weeds for now, haha... He sees one of those larger weed, but to be a bit more caeful, he digs away at the soil around it before pulling. ]

Hey Flynn, you know how the prayer is to give the mother hope and all... but do you think that it's a good thing? Her kid could be... gone?

[ He hesitates in finishing that sentence. ]

[choseneutrality]

[Flynn looks around too and he can see a few more large clusters of weeds with smaller patches growing around them. He also notes the way Otegine dealt with the large weed he pulled up. Maybe he should try that then.]

I am aware. [He is quiet for a bit as he focuses on removing another large weed, this time without removing a good chunk of the soil in the process. The mother wanted hope and that wasn't a bad thing. But there was also to very real possibility that the girl was gone forever.

Flynn contemplates for a bit before he finally speaks again.]

Perhaps... But I do not think it is wrong that she wants to keep that hope alive.

[tsuku]

[ ...Ayup. Mikazuki, the keeper of old traditions and sobering fairytales. Maybe they can decorate Mikazuki's room with rabbits, so he'll have companions just like Chang'e. ]

Well, I could practice using it for you later. Most of the time, I use it to fix things or scare little ayakashi... Oh, like this!

[ That glass teaset has a fellow tea cup with a crack on the edge. Since it's out in the open for people to see and touch, that's kind of expected. Reaching over, Otegine rubs his thumb along that break, almost as if he erases it away like it's just a pencil mark. ]

There. I don't have a frame of reference for different god powers, but I don't mind it.

[heiancrescent]

[Bless Otegine, never one to think too much about the dark side of the moon. Now at least there won't be a lonely side.

Mikazuki watches in amazement, when the crack vanishes with a touch, and claps. Anyone else who tried that would just be left with a cut.]

This is already impressive. No one would ever need to worry about breaking glass ever again.

[Otegine, fixer of windows, tea sets, fancy wine glasses, and so on.]