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

[brynwieldr]

[It's the second day of Hijikata's work that Leo finds him. There's no shrines to Odin here, of course, but it's Leo. He doesn't need that as an excuse to explore the world.

It's not hard to find Hijikata when he collapses on a nearby bench. What is that man doing...]

Hijikata?

II

[freezetheheavens]

[Usually not one to pry into the affair of the others, he doesn't miss the man by the riverbank.

The fireworks start and Toushirou only makes enough noise to alert the other man to his presence. He won't speak up first; there's something melancholy surrounding this man and if he were thinking about something, then Toushirou would prefer not to bother him.

He can wait.]

II

[theunluckygirl]

[It's different, somehow, seeing everything through the eyes of a 'God' this time around. The haphazard scars at her back proclaiming 'death to amaterasu' don't get any easier to manage, and she's had a hard time forgetting thy were there. It's also hard to forget the people she left behind and her eyes still nervously scan the crowds for Schuldig once in a while, but it's a different god she's come to seek out this time around.

When she does track him down, she hopes it's early enough that he's not too far gone into his drink--she has a feeling he might need to drink more after they talk.

Still, she's hesitant to approach at first-- she's not sure if news of her revival might have reached him yet and she wonders if she first should have sent some sort of message. Perhaps that would soften the impact some?

--Well, she can't spend all night deliberating about this. She clears her throat.]

Mr... Mr. Hijikata...?

I, 27th

[revolutionfalcon]

[Since figuring out that his home city doesn't exist in this world's version of Japan, Shun's found himself curious about the other ways the country might differ. Shrines at this point just seem like a natural place to start, and it's for that reason Shun finds himself at a major one - this, at least, is the same. He'll look for big differences before he does small ones.

It's difficult to miss Hijikata in his work, though, and given Shun's taking a fairly close look, he has time to watch him drink, work, then drink again. It seems far from long enough given how much he's been doing, though, so Shun heads over to intercept just before the next time he gets up to return to work.]

Sit back down, or all you're going to be giving these people is an unconscious body to deal with. [His tone is as brusque as ever. This isn't something he's ever had much patience for...at least, seeing other people do it.]

I

[sonofson]

[It's only natural for Goten to zip over and pester the man upon spotting him. It felt like it had been awhile since he last got to hang out with vice commander.]

Are you okay?

[He's never really seen Hijikata looking worn out like this and it's concerning. How Goten happen by him is a mystery in itself but luckily he has a bird's eye view whenever he decides to fly about. He blinks down at Hijikata, floating down but staying just above him.]

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.

II.

[sweetdeath]

[The fireworks are sketching multicolored flowers in the sky above, and the riverbank is the best place to watch them from: Tsuzuki's just visiting Kyoto for the evening, in fact, planning to pick Sakura up some nice tea from one of the shops and enjoy the festival while he's at it. He's got a small shopping bag in hand, and he stops when he realizes the riverbank spot he'd picked out for firework-watching is already occupied.]

Whoa, sorry! I didn't think anyone was down here....

[He trails off as a triple burst of white fire above illuminates the other man. Mostly-empty sake bottle, distant expression? He's down here drinking alone, poor guy. Nobody should have to do that.]

... mind if I sit? It's a great spot for the fireworks, huh?