thenearshore | 015 | Sky Full Of Stars

Entry tags:

015 | Sky Full Of Stars

Who: Everyone!
What: Tanabata Festival
When: All day July 5
Where: The Near Shore
Summary: The Heavens are throwing a party and you're invited!

Edit: OVERFLOW is here!

With Tanabata drawing close, the Heavens have decided that there is nothing wrong with a little celebration for the annual occasion. So they have invited everyone on the Far Shore as well as a large number of people from the Near Shore to attend a festival for Tanabata. Tanabata festivals are not uncommon in this area, so the Near Shore residents are none the wiser, though some of them are a little uncertain about where this street they've never heard of popped up from...

Tanabata is a festival held to celebrate the one time a year that the lovers Orihime and Hikoboshi can meet across the vast expanse of the Milky Way. Many birds have been working their tail feathers off to create a bridge for the two lovebirds and that bridge - perhaps unsurprisingly - touches down on this street, in the middle of the festival.

The Heavens have prepared entertainment, food stalls, and as many tanzaku as might be needed for everyone to write down wishes, along with plenty of bamboo stalks to hang the wishes from.

New arrivals will find themselves ushered to the festival and offered traditional clothing after their normal briefing at the Meeting Hall.

Stalls

There are festival stalls of every kind present, all run by shinki dressed in white robes and bearing the golden chrysanthemum of Amaterasu. Many of them seem a little bruised still, but they are happy to smile for anyone who comes to the stall they are running. There is food, games, and drinks available of all kinds, so feel free to roam around to your heart's content sampling everything that you can.

Performance

A large stage has been erected at one end of the festival street. The Heavens know that there are many talented gods and shinki present, so they are more than willing to clear spots in the scheduling for those people to perform. Anytime a Far Shore resident isn't on stage, there are plenty of Near Shore acts to go on, ranging the gambit from traditional music and instruments all the way to a rock band that has somehow found themselves here for the celebration.

Wishes

NOTE:

The Bridge

with

In Summary:

Enjoy the festival
Watch some quality entertainment
Make and/or answer wishes
Meet Orihime
Traverse the bridge
Have fun~

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...? [ Oh!

He leans back a little as well, realizing they can both sit like that a little more comfortably now. Which is almost a little strange—no it definitely is, but... you know that's okay. It's just how they've always been; comfortable like that.

It's also something that if anyone ever pointed it out or it was ever not just the two of them and no one else around he'd beat them into a pulp. Depending on who they were. There'd at least be a lot of red-faced huffing.

But he looks a little amazed at that. Or caught off-guard, especially that she turned to look at him. In a good way but!! ]

Ah, yes... [ Does he sound a little dumbfounded? Probably because he is. Ah, he knew Lux was sharp, but he wasn't quite expecting her to put it together that quickly either... ]

[ Yes, please don't ever point out that this might have been anything outside of their normal, or she might just die (again) of embarrassment. And as for being seen...

She might not be aware of the social decorum associated with her former life, but Lux is at least cognizant to the fact that acting this way in public... yeah, no, that would never happen. Because she could never bring herself to act this way in public, let alone deal with anyone seeing them this way.

Hearing him sound so startled, she almost leans forward so she can get a better look, to crane her head and give him an almost quizzical "are you all right?" But that seems a bit much, and instead she lowers her head, eyes closed in thought.

Because a story like that...

The way she speaks isn't quite urgent as much as it is insistent. Something she has to know; something that may have been bothering her for quite some time now, even if she never gave those concerns a voice.

Until now. ]

How can you save them? Those lost souls who have become more monster than man. If there's still a soul in there longing to be saved, then there must be something that can be done.

[ She pauses.

("I hope, if it comes to that, that you have the choice.") ]

Right?

[ Something about the way she asks that...

Why is that so important to her? ]

There always is. [ Gentle but certain. ]

But only thing that can save them is to be destroyed with a weapon called "Innocence". Even if it means destroying the body that remained... the soul is purified and can rest then.

Like a god and a shinki can against an ayakashi. [ It's thoughtful though, and he shifts a little to have just one arm looped around her, so he can bring his left up in front of the both of them and flex his hand for a moment, fingers spread wide in the air. The more demonic appearance is hidden by the single white glove he's opted to keep wearing, but the rest of his arm is still a deep blood red up to the point where it disappears into his sleeve. Like he's reflective as well about that, the state of his hand, but...

It's because he also has not been able to destroy or save a single spirit of any sort here with it. ]

Against an ayakashi though... it doesn't seem to be as effective.

[ The body must be destroyed, so that the soul may be purified and laid to rest.

Her shoulders shift slightly at that revelation, at the explanation of what an akuma's origins and fate are. ]

Something like that...

[ If that's really all that can be done... should she say something? Should she simply let it go, smile and encourage him that surely they could find a way together— ]

[ Measured in her movements, Lux leans forward just slightly, rested against his right arm and reaching with her now unencumbered left; placing it lightly on top of his outstretched hand. And it's strange, in that moment, as flickering as her thoughts seem to feel, this sort of "should I, or shouldn't I," back-and-forth going on in her head, what is more overwhelming is such a simple thought.

...His hands are so much bigger than mine.

And taking a breath, her shoulders starting to relax again, her chin tips upward toward the sky. Because his story of an akuma, while the details were certainly different, does sound a bit like one she has heard before. A cautionary tale from another shinki who, surprisingly, did not lose himself to anguish and grief afterwards.

(...Why?)

One who told her that she should be careful, and make sure to have a backup plan, to which she said, quite plainly:

No.

While her voice soft, it's not without conviction, a certain fire that might not have been there before. Because while it was important to do something about the ayakashi, how she seemed to need to fight as if it was what she was born and named to do, there was something else as well. ]

I'm not sure what "Innocence" is capable of, but I do know this. We will find a way. I can't imagine what it must feel like for a soul to suffer like that—the soul of an ayakashi, the soul of an akuma, or the soul of someone who might have summoned either to this world. I don't want that for anyone. I don't want anyone to be burdened with that sort of grief, to have to live with it, or have it change them for the worst.

[ Least of all... ]

Edited 2017-04-24 02:56 (UTC)

[ Least of all him. ]

Someone here told me—

[ Cho Hakkai, on the afternoon that Link arrived, when they were all so busy with preparations and the sudden appearance of a new shinki that she could easy brush her fears under the rug.

Her hand shifting, she curls her fingertips slightly, to fit in the cracks between his fingers. ]

That perhaps not just humans and shinki are in danger here. That his first goddess disappeared; and when they found her, she had changed. That her soul was trapped in the body of another, whose sole purpose was to devour the living. And so she had to be destroyed—by his hand.

[ Her fingertips twitching slightly between his, she continued, her tone even and strangely unaffected. ]

I can't say for certain what happened; I'm not sure what caused her to change like that. But—

[ Her hand still over his, she glances at him from over her shoulder, smiling in such a way that's almost haunted. Like she hoped she would never have to voice these fears, but knowing, if such a thing were possible... that it was possible, and knowing that there was little she could do to stop that sort of pain and suffering by herself... ]

I refuse to let that happen. I would sooner lose my name than allow something like that to happen, to anyone.

[ Least of all him. ]

I'm not sure how yet, but I'll find a way to protect everyone. To shine like a light in the darkness, and to hope that that will be enough.

[ Lux. Telling him all of that...

Saying it all like that and then saying "I refuse to let that happen"... do you mean...

(...you aren't afraid of that happening to him, are you?)

He knows she is though, and he's gone still with not being sure how to respond to that. Because of the memories that brings up too, the ones he never told her. "If that should happen... please kill me.

"But that won't happen. I'll stop him..."

He presses his lips together until the color drains from them and doesn't say a thing. Because of the way she's spoken like that—and because she doesn't know, truly doesn't know, and honestly it just seems better that way. When while Allen won't give actual voice to it... whatever happened with his being summoned to a place and a time not his own...

...somehow in his soul being brought to Enprise only his came. Maybe it's a blessing, but it if is one it's not one he's going to dwell on or question other than he's grateful how clear his head's been of the Noah since that time. And this is something that's so intense with how Lux speaks of it that it might normally be something he'd tapdance and shy away from a bit, because the moment where he's raw and forthright like that—it's only ever under very specific reasons and moments of high emotion himself. But he knows Lux and she'd take that really badly to say the least. In the way where he'd wish she'd just be mad at him. And so, caught for a moment there and uncertain how to respond, his expression becomes a little slack in just looking down his arm to where their fingers are meshed.

To protect everyone...

He won't judge her for it—never ever—for saying she'll protect everyone when even Allen clarifies that as he'll want to save everyone he can. And will do literally everything to those ends but.. with knowing and being too painfully aware of how powerless he might be at times. Allen who said he would not allow the Fourteenth to awaken as an enemy to the Order... but that if it did they should kill him.

And mostly, he'd said that to reassure them—and perhaps himself.

But maybe that's forever the difference in their worlds and the ugliness in his. ]

Aah.. [ A soft exhale through his nose, like he's relinquishing something with that in some personal debate with himself. Hai, hai... ] But you know, Lux...

It isn't that one or another is in danger from something. Any enemy. [ Which is the difference from his world and the mentality he's gotten used to. And his fingers curl gently around hers. To squeeze lightly... but also begin to bring around. Both their hands clasped so, that he brings around to bear with a twist of his wrist— ]

Every one of us... [ There's no flare, no cool-warm tickle of mana. But she might feel a tickle of breath against her knuckles. ]

...we're still human inside. And being human— [ Talking like it's absolutely normal. Commonplace. Everyday. Like before except not. This time...

This time it's more like a very somber sort of promise or acknowledgement, fingers drawn up to touch lightly against lips. What is altogether not a kiss or exactly like that almost impish, whimsical if chaste sort of a moment at another festival months ago. Too sobered for that, eyes hooded with snowy lashes weighted at half-mast. Like this is a deeply important, carefully weighted kind of thing and the gesture an afterthought.

And like it's the most natural, everyday kind of thing. ]

"Human beings are the only ones who can be cursed."

...I think that means it could always happen.

[ He'll start to let her hand go then. ]

[ How could she know when, in this lifetime and the last, he was so reluctant to tell her anything about himself save for the most base details? And that was his business to be sure, because everyone was entitled to their privacy and their secrets... and to that end, she shouldn't press. It's not her business, after all. She should leave it alone.

But Hakkai's words, this cautionary tale from a shinki who was (is) clearly still mourning the loss of someone who meant quite a bit to him, stayed with her. The fear and guilt of loss, of the "what ifs," even if knowing that there was likely nothing he could have done to prevent any of that. And the feeling of knowing that, if he did not act, if he did not do something to end her suffering, she would continue to be this monster unto humanity in perpetuum... and knowing that his hands would always be covered in her blood...

How could Lux not be afraid? Even as she proclaimed in confidence that she would never let that happen, that she would sooner put her own existence in danger to keep someone who—

"Important" or "precious" didn't quite explain it. There were no words to explain it, and perhaps that was a part of the Naming ceremony, that intrinsic bond that went beyond conventional definitions. But something in her very soul, that candlelight's flicker of who she understood herself to be, the one she said she had been afraid of becoming... said otherwise. That this was them, had been them, and was one of the few things that she was no longer afraid of.

Their path; the only words she could (would) ever use to describe it. One where they existed in order to save, to protect, to destroy ayakashi in some effort to restore and create some semblance of happiness... but, in the most simple terms, to simply exist as well. With each other, and in some cases, for each other as well.

The boy who wishes to save the world, and the weapon (the girl) who fights by his side.

("You and I together, a weapon to save the world.")

Hearing him practically sigh at her back, Lux blinks a few times, beginning to glance back at him from over her shoulder. What was he—

Feeling him clasp her hand didn't cause her to pause, but that he begins to pull it back, like he might draw it to his chest again as he had a few nights before, in a moment of quiet indignation, she quiets, eyes closing as she prepares for what he might say.

But they open just as quickly as she feels a bit of breath against her knuckles, shoulders suddenly square and her back incredibly straight. She can't at all see what he's doing, but feeling the combined warmth of breath and...

The soft warmth of lips pressed gently to her slightly curled fingers. And one could hear a pin drop at that moment, her eyes snapping open and breath held high in her chest. Because while simple yet heartwarming gestures—held hands, quiet but meaningful embraces, a gentle press of forehead to forehead—seemed to always be a part of their idiom, something like this...

Something like this was...

It's a little unfair, Allen, because they both know that he can tell exactly what is going on in her mind. So to speak. Which is why... ]

[ That quivering, buzzing feeling of colors that can't quite keep still, something that is probably so familiar to him in so many ways yet somehow incredibly different. But even as it quiets down, sobering because his words spoken so closely to her fingers that she swears she can almost feel his lips brushing against them, feel the warm coil of breath there—

There's something else that takes the place of that almost dazed, shimmery sense of surprise that made up her being for just a moment. Because what he does say...

That kiss-that-wasn't-quite-a-kiss, it was meant to be an apology, wasn't it? Something quiet and not quite intimate but strangely still like them that, really, it couldn't be anything but.

"I'm sorry.

"But there is nothing you can do."

Like it was—

Like it was something he experienced before, perhaps. And that makes sense, given of the nature of akuma as he explained it, something that he remembers and she doesn't. But to kiss her hand like that in some kind of quiet apology, as if to say he's thankful, but in the same breath tell her that she would be powerless to stop it should it happen...

That she would be powerless to stop it should it happen to him...

...Did something happen? Given how private he was, how little he spoke about himself—always about other people, his father for example, but never about himself—she can assume... Should she assume?

"Every one of us... we're still human inside. And being human—

I think that means it could always happen."

And that she could do nothing to stop it. And hearing that from him, his voice tempered and strangely quiet for such heavy words... ]

...

[ Feeling his hand begin to fall away from hers, it's almost terrifying to her how she seems to move without thinking. Without considering all of the little things that go on in her head, even with him. But then, they seem to have moments where, for whatever reason, she acts without thought, without reason or consideration for decorum or nuance.

This would be one of them. Because to talk like that, to act as if that would be enough, that she would simply let it go and accept fate as it was...

Don't act as if your existence means nothing.

Slowly, she pulls her hand away from his, although not before giving his fingers a gentle squeeze with her own. Her other hand falling away from his arm as she shifts, mindful not to brush her shoulder against him; turning toward him before rising just slightly on her knees. Leaning forward, eyes closed...

And pressing the fingers of her left hand—the same ones he kissed-yet-didn't—to his lips before resting her forehead against his. Close enough that her breath might tickle just slightly. ]

I know that.

[ Soft as a whisper but almost rebuking, her brow furrowing slightly as a deep-set frown turns her lips, Lux takes a breath. ]

I know that. And I'm terrified of that thought; of knowing that it could just as easily happen to you or to me, and that I would be powerless to stop it.

[ Their foreheads still touching, she bows her head slightly, eyes closing tight. She wanted to keep this to herself, to not let that fear gain a voice, and most of all, not to burden him with it. But at the same time, after what they had been through, knowing that there were already so many secrets between the two of them and hating that this was the woman she was...

With all of that, it would be doing him (and her) a disservice if she kept it to herself. And so that's why...

She takes a breath then, eyes opening finally, lowered and focused on something and nothing at all. ]

And if that were to happen to you, even if I'm sure I can't prevent it, I'm not sure I would ever be able to forgive myself. If you were to become something like that...

[ "I want you to destroy me."

She's sure that's the answer he wants. But—

Still barely a whisper, her voice gains strength, her words filled with conviction. Because if he was certain that there is nothing she could do to stop it, then... ]

I would find you, any trace of you that might be left, and bring you back. Bring you back home... with me.

Edited (I'm done fussing with this now I swear) 2017-04-24 22:01 (UTC)

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015 | Sky Full Of Stars

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