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

[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?

[koukai_kirai]

[The full force of Souji's awe is humbling. It's always been clear in his eyes, in the way he smiles when no one's watching too closely, but now he can feel the ripples of it brushing directly against his own heart, and it's...]

[It's more than he deserves. It's more than anyone can deserve, and he should feel guilty about accepting it as much as he does, but at the same time, it's so good, so pure and beautiful and powerful that the only right thing there can be to do is to let Souji keep it and do his best to come close being worthy of it for him.]

[Thoughtlessly, he reaches up to brush Souji's hair away from his face, then moves away to start walking to a nearby bench in the shade of the steep hillside the shrine is built on.]

Let's sit over there. It's out of the sun at this time of day.

[...And it's close enough to the offering box that if anyone has a real emergency or anything, he can take a break from taking a break and deal with it quickly.]

[spes_phthisica]

[Souji relishes the affectionate gesture in an entirely unselfconcious way, leaning into the broad hand brushing across his face with a happy little sigh. As if the way he feels about serving Hijikata isn't its own reward, he could also tell his god that every gift of gentleness and care of this kind deserves so much more than Hijikata gives it credit for.

As it is, he stays arm in arm with the other man, allowing himself to be pulled over to the nearby bench. He gives Hijikata an amused little look, knowing he doesn't need to say anything specifically about the proximity to the offering box and how Hijikata isn't exactly relaxing completely like this; his god will know what he means by it. But Souji doesn't really mind... he just can't pass up the opportunity to tease his god, even if ever so slightly.]

It is a very nice bench. And it has a nice view, too. [There is laughter in his voice as he sits down and lifts the basket he'd brought with him into his lap.] It's a pretty nice way to eat your lunch in summer, right?

[koukai_kirai]

[Thankfully, there's a really easy way to pretend to miss the point of that comment. He reaches into his pocket for his tin of cigarettes, and looks Souji briefly up and down as he draws one out.]

Mm. The view's not bad at all.

[spes_phthisica]

[R U D E. He can't just turn the tables like that and tease back!

... Well, in fact he can, and he just did. And Souji quite predictably doesn't quite know how to deal with it. He blushes and squirms a little bit, but he doesn't exactly look unhappy with the compliment. He's certainly comfortable enough still to reply with:]

It looks pretty good from where I'm sitting too. [Because seriously. Hijikata's face needs to stop it.]

[koukai_kirai]

[Too easy, too easy...]

[Hijikata smiles slightly, as he lights his cigarette and takes a couple of little puffs to get it started.]

...So. What have we got for our lunch today?

[spes_phthisica]

[Hijikata is lucky that he's so charming, or Souji would maybe feel tempted to empty out his basked over his head. Punk.

Instead he opens it up and starts sorting through the contents.]

Well, I didn't know for how long you were going to be working, so I brought things that were going to keep - and cold things are nicer during the summer anyway. There's onigiri and some sandwiches. I cut up some fruit and wrapped it with ice. Put some soba under that so that it would keep cool. Vegetable sticks and some kind of stuff to dip it in. [He smiles a bit sheepishly.] I was rather hungry when I packed all of this.

Then again, you've been working hard.

[koukai_kirai]

[There's so much food. It's still a little bit fascinating to him how much food can be had for so little money and effort, in a world where farming and cooking have been industrialized...]

[He reaches for the soba. Nothing like cold soba in the summertime.]

Well. I certainly can't accuse you of skimping on me.

[spes_phthisica]

[Souji is even enough of a grownup not to immediately go for the chilled fruit, amazing. Instead he picks out a sandwich and nibbles on it while giving Hijikata a demure look.]

Well, since you've got no wife to look after you, I guess I'll have to do. [The comment backfires a bit because just saying it makes Souji blush a bit, but he doesn't really regret it.]

[koukai_kirai]

[His conversation with Leo comes flooding back to him, and for a second, Hijikata freezes up. More astonishingly, he might actually blush a little.]

...Yeah. You'll do, I guess.

[He reaches out to ruffle Souji's hair softly, at least half to cover for his own sudden embarrassment.]