just a couple kids on a summer street

[socials]

Who: Souji ( socials ) & Homura ( timeshields )
When: 06/28, 06/29
Where: Downtown on the Near Shore
What: Team Izanagi decides to deal with some yakuza and ayakashi in one fell swoop.
Warning: Minor violence

Though Souji is a social creature, nowadays, he understands that his shinki isn't in the least bit. It's in contrast to both Reiji and Akihiko, although they were social in different ways, but, really, he cares a great deal about Homura and her comfort. He's not about to force her into a situation that she's not comfortable in.

Which is why he's opted to take this prayer. She doesn't do well in social situations, but she does do well in combat ones, and stealth as well. This prayer calls for them to at least locate the den, if not deal with yakuza or ayakashi. It feels a lot more appropriate than the prayer they helped Nanako with, even if they all enjoyed it. For the most part.

Long and the short: let Homura do behind the scenes work or fight things, when it comes to prayers. It'll result in less stress for her.

Comments

[timeshields]

They strike a surprising amount of balance when they're working together. It's something she's grateful for, even if it's a much quieter, constant emotion when they're working together like this. They've got each other and that's comforting even in a situation like this.

Now.

And with a pulse, everything that they can see goes eerily still. They're the only people who can move and interact with anything in her time bubble.

[socials]

The eerie stillness washes over him, reminds him a little of Izanami's world in the Midnight Channel, the same stillness Yomotsu Hirasaka had without the thick fog rolling over everything. But Souji embraces it, this time. He moves to the edge of the roof, dropping down and buffering the fall with a there-and-gone flicker of a teleport, heading right for the nearest ayakashi.

They have a timeframe to work in. While they know, now, the length of an augment, he's not going to push it, and instead he focuses on their mission.

Beheading the smaller ayakashi and destroying them is the route he takes, first. Eliminating them to focus on the big one will help in the long run, and who knows - maybe they empower it somehow.

[timeshields]

Was the jump really necessary? It wasn't as though the ayakashi were going to move while everything is completely stopped in time. Whatever, it's not as though Souji's hurt like this, so she can excuse it.

While she can tell the amount of ayakashi, and the large ayakashi is also here. She can't tell how they necessarily relate to each other. A shield doesn't have those properties and her power is stopping time... for a very long time, right now.

Are you satisfied with the small ones?

[socials]

It just seemed like the quickest route to get from point A to point B, to him. Souji also sort of likes testing out the limitations of his strength as a god, and that includes the uses of teleportation.

Thankfully not his durability. He hasn't put that to the test just yet, and he knows Homura wouldn't approve of it, anyways.

Another of the shoulder demon ayakashi loses its head, before he cuts it in half to destroy it completely. Souji moves on from it, making quick, effecient work on those he can find. "No, but in my experience, it's better safe than sorry to take care of the small enemies when they're surrounding a big one. Either they're a shield, contribute power in some way, or have the capability of healing the bigger enemy somehow."

[timeshields]

Unnecessary. Both the teleportation and the small enemies. If she had her memories, she would remember why she felt so strongly about wasting time on the little things. The big one is the biggest threat and when it's dead everything else goes right along with it. That's how witches and their familiars worked.

But without that knowledge, she just watches Souji cut the small ones down.

Everything is frozen in time. If you attacked the big one, none of the little ones could do anything.

[socials]

While their experiences differ - you had to eliminate all enemies, when it came to fighting Shadows, before a fight ended - Souji makes sure to give Homura's the consideration it deserves rather than dismissing it. He doesn't stop slaying and destroying the other ayakashi as he does, a flash of Maziodyne eliminating the ones that are closer together, but he does, eventually, stop.

And then he adjusts his grip on the sword again, moving towards where the massive ayakashi is frozen. After facing the Shadows he has, and Ameno-sagiri, and Izanami in her true form...

This doesn't really do much more than give him a bigger target to work with.

"Maybe so. But we'll take care of all of them, to make sure none of the little ones can become like this, too."

[timeshields]

That only happens if the familiars kill enough people. But this is a different world with potentially different rules. She shouldn't assume it works the way it's supposed to. Maybe sparing the time to kill off the smaller enemies was worth it. She can't tell.

Fine. Don't over exert yourself. Like she isn't the one who's been allowed to go far, far beyond the boundaries of what she can usually accomplish.

[socials]

No familiars here because somehow this world with hidden monsters is better than her world with hidden monsters.

"You're my guide," Souji replies, walking a circle around the big ayakashi. He's trying to find a weak point in it, to make this a more quick rending. It's large enough that he's not sure one strike would take it down, a lot like the cubes when he first arrived here.

"We'll take care of this one, to make sure we're at our strongest when dealing with it, and then return to the small fry."

[timeshields]

Why'd she get the shortest end of the hidden monster stick? Who does she complain to?

At least they have a while before she needs to let time flow normally again. She's still a bit uncomfortable having Souji so close to a huge ayakashi like this. Even though she knows nothing in twenty feet could possibly move right now.

It's a deal. The big one is the biggest threat.

[socials]

There are too many people to complain to, and none of them that they actually can.

Even if they're close to it like this, he's making a point to give it a decent berth, no room for accidentally touching it. The only problem is, giving it one strike at all would possibly unfreeze it, and it's not something that he's very enthused about trying right now. But... risks have to be taken, and Souji knows that.

He reaches his hand up, Arcana card materializing - it's the Lovers for Ishtar, until he gives it a swipe, changing it into the World. "If it unfreezes because we can't destroy it in one hit, I'll stun it with an elemental attack before finishing the job."

[timeshields]

She has a lot of complaints.

If he touches it and it isn't immediately killed they're going to be stuck with a giant ayakashi trying to kill them. It's probably fine considering Souji's level of combat ability, but that doesn't mean she's going to be happy about it.

Fine. This would be simpler if you had a ranged weapon.

[socials]

So does he, don't worry. They'll find the complaint box someday.

"It would be, but unfortunately I need training for those." And it'd be a lot better if he had a combat-oriented shinki. Homura compliments him, true, and he's thought a lot about it, but this makes it a little more difficult.

But Souji summons Izanagi-no-Okami, and opts to use Mind Charge first. That way, the attack will be almost three times stronger, and he'll do more than enough damage to probably kill it between the two attacks if the first fails. (If the first doesn't fail, then he'll just use Megidolaon on the remaining, smaller ayakashi in the area, and destroy all of them with severe overkill.)

With his Persona watching over him, ready, he brings the sword he carries around and down onto the back of the large, obese demon's neck.

[timeshields]

I can teach you how to use a gun and make grenades. She says it as easy as anything but for the briefest moment she thinks 'why the hell do I know that.' It leaves as soon as she thinks it.

She's tense as she watches Souji swing his sword to try and decapitate the ayakashi. It doesn't seem to be quite enough, and the thing starts to move out of its time stasis.

Move! Get away!

[socials]

He makes an affirmative noise to that - he'd like that, and he knows why she knows how to do it. It's... still something to wrap his mind around, sometimes, but Souji has seen plenty of things from Inaba to the Far Shore, so... at this point it's just a blip, a young girl wielding guns and grenades.

Especially when the ayakashi begins to move.

A god's teleportation comes in handy in situations like this. Souji flickers out and back in, out of what he perceives the ayakashi's range to be. Where Izanagi stands over things, he raises his naginata, spearing it down into the ayakashi at the same time that he uses Megidolaon to hit all of the surrounding ayakashi with severe Almighty.

[timeshields]

It's a strange thing to know how to do given her age, but it's nothing she's going to overly question. What matters now is Souji and his safety, if she can help with that, then she'll do everything in her power.

Once all the other ayakashi are appropriately destroyed she lets go of time stop, now it's just them versus the mother of all of these small ones. There's the suggestion of a breath being taken as he reinstates the time stop, freezing the largest in place.

Go.

[socials]

A grenade would, admittedly, come in handy at the moment. Even a gun. But Souji has no idea how to use them, never thought to learn from Naoto when he was in Inaba, and he certainly isn't going to do it now. So he marks it at the back of his mind - find some means of acquiring a gun and the supplies to make grenades.

Later, though. Izanagi can't rend the large ayakashi in one strike, even with a pierce attack and Megidolaon, but that's fine. He doesn't worry about it.

Just lets his Persona draw back, in the same moment that he rushes forward. There's no need to relay information to him, nor to Homura, not when the Persona is a part of him, and he trusts Homura to cover him, to understand what he's doing when he brings his sword up the same time Izanagi does his naginata.

They both go to strike it at the same time, to take its head off.

[timeshields]

Here there are though, Souji just with a sword and honestly. Homura has no idea how to use those either, nor does she have any inclination towards that particular weapon. It shouldn't be hard to find a gun provided they look in the right place. And a middle schooler can make a simple pipe bomb. That's for later.

For now, she'll keep time stopped while Souji deals with the mother ayakashi. He's strong enough that it's handled quickly enough, and her own strength is multiplied by their bond. Nevertheless, she's starting to get weary. As soon as the ayakashi's head is gone time starts moving again.

[socials]

The image of Homura making a pipe bomb is... not an unusual one, after getting the snapshots of her life before death. But it certainly isn't something that he's ever considered making, himself, and he has to wonder if it's something viable for fighting ayakashi. Maybe if they put holy water in it?

Once the massive, fat ayakashi's head is cleaved off, Souji whips his sword to the side as if removing blood from the blade and lets Izanagi fade out. He's still not dropping his guard just yet, but he does step back, feeling the weariness that weighs on Homura. No surprise, given that this is the first time they've augmented her abilities. But changing her back is something they ought to do, so she can rest.

"Sense anything else?"

[timeshields]

She's silent for a long moment as she scans the area. As far as she can tell, there's nothing else here. They've managed to destroy all of the akayashi that were hanging around here. And now that they've dealt with the 'mother' they should be good to go. They won't spawn as much here.

No. We're clear.

[socials]

Considering things a moment, and feeling out the area a little himself with his instincts, Souji slowly sheaths the blade and takes his hand to rest it on the curve of Homura's vessel form. Just to make contact with her. Because he's not sure if he'll need to support her or not, considering the exhaustion.

"All right." He breathes out, then says, "Akemi Homura."

[timeshields]

The answer to that is a resounding he needs to because as soon as Homura comes back to her human form she's stumbling slightly and presses her face against Souji's chest, gripping at his shirt for some purchase.

She needs a nap... Or a full rest.

[socials]

Hup - not a surprise at all. Souji huffs a small laugh, leaning down so that he can get an arm underneath the back of her thighs and heft her up. She's small enough that it's not a problem, although she's still, regardless, taller than Nanako. But the position is a familiar one for him, because of his baby cousin, so... of course it'll be extended to his other surrogate sister.

"You did a really good job, Homura. You helped keep me safe, and made it so we could take care of all of the ayakashi."

[timeshields]

Her body feels so heavy... What's with that, isn't she supposed to be dead? If she could think straight she'd question it a bit more, but after that entire ordeal, she just wants to curl up somewhere and sleep until noon.

"I'm glad you're safe..." Because even as hazy as she is, that's important. That's the most important thing in the whole world.

[socials]

"I couldn't ask for a better shinki," Souji tells her, easy as anything. Because he means it. His two sisters are the most important people to him, hands down, and he knows he can trust Homura to protect him no matter what. It's a little scary to think about, when he knows how much she'd sacrificed to protect Madoka, but...

He'll just do his best to make sure something like that doesn't happen with them.

"Let's go home. You've earned a night of sleep."