thenearshore | 018 | Season Spirits

018 | Season Spirits

Who: Everyone!
What: Season spirits and spooky things
When: IC August 1-15
Where: The Near Shore and Far Shore
Summary: It's the time for spirits to get a bit more 'lively'.

August is a spiritual season in Japan with many people preparing for the Obon festival but many others get into the spirit in another way. All across Japan, people have begun to share their favorite summer ghost stories. Movie theaters advertise the hottest horror flick of the season, teenagers challenge each other to do trials of courage, haunted houses begin to pop up, and it feels like you can't change the channel without switching to some ghost hunting urban legend special. All of this talk about spirits comes at a cost, though.

July comes and passes easily enough but it's almost as if as soon as August begins, so do the incidents. There's an increase in spiritual activity and shenanigans on both shores. Some of them are harmless spooks but others are much more sinister. Arm yourselves with all of the ofuda and omamori you can find and get out there and restore peace!

Possessed Possessions

Inhabitants of the Far Shore may awaken to find their sheets trying to strangle them and shoes stomping on the floor around them. Others may go about their day and find out their teapots suddenly only serve lukewarm tea or their weapons are trying to take swings at them. They're just playful spirits that will abandon their hosts if you shove any ofuda/omamori at them or yell loudly enough. They aren't malicious spirits... they were only just trying to have some fun.

Spirited Festivals

There's a festival every weekend and some of them have set up haunted houses for patrons to visit. You have your standard haunted house thrills... costume make up, jump scares, special effects smoke, the usual! But it looks like some real ghosts have made themselves at home here. Visitors are going in and emerging hours later absolutely traumatized. It looks like once you enter, the real spirits walk you around in circles and give you real scares. There are some spirits here just to have fun thrills and these are spirits that can be chased away with regular ofuda. But it looks like the more violent ones are actually ayakashi out for vengeance. Be careful in there!

Cursed Charms

There sure are some weird trends out there, huh? The latest one is buying cursed trinkets off the internet and passing them off as gifts to unsuspecting victims whether it be to prank a friend or get revenge on an enemy. Cursed mirrors, dolls, fake ofuda, VHS tapes, and so on are being passed around the Near Shore and spreading all sorts of curses.

Bad luck. As long as you're in possession of the cursed item, you'll be followed by bad luck to varying degrees depending on the quality of the charm.
Fear. Holding onto this charm results in intense, crippling fear. The fear can manifest as an intense paranoia at all times or being frozen with fear in the face of danger. Some say you can even die of fright...
Sickness. This charm is pretty straightforward. Having this charm just makes you feel incredibly under the weather and your health will worsen the longer you have the charm.
Evil. Holding onto this charm results in you being followed attracting evil instead of warding it. Suddenly, you feel as though you are always being followed, as if something is stalking you and clearly out to get you. You begin to run into smaller ayakashi at first but they keep growing in strength and number until you can't fight anymore.
Bad romance. Someone's meddled with a romance charm so it ends relationships instead of making them! People stuck with this charm are suddenly hyper aware of the faults of others. Everything gets on your nerves and you can't stand being around that person because they're just that annoying. It doesn't just work on couples! It also works on friends and relatives too.
Bears? An oddly specific curse. It looks like someone has taken a protection from bears charm and made it so now you attract bears where ever you go. Some of them are nice but others...

You can try to destroy the charms but you will find that unless you have purification powers or rend it, the effects last. It looks like most people have been able to shake off the effects by simply disposing of them at temples and buying another charm to counter the effects.

Haunting Hour

There are reports of violent attacks at night-- people being pulled into alleys and attacked, school children being chased by slashers while walking home from school, homes being broken into-- and all of it is done without a single clue left behind to explain who did it. People are warned to be careful at night and as the sun begins to set, something happens. The hour between sunset and dark is supposed to be the scariest hour them all. At this time, the shadows are suspiciously bigger and darker and you constantly see things just out of the corner of your eye. Suddenly, the wind blows cold and there's a rotten smell in the air like blood. It's Oumagatoki, the hour evil spirits meet. Small time ayakashi and spirits on the verge of becoming ayakashi spill into the streets and begin to terrorize others. Protect the people of the Near Shore and watch your own backs.*

* These are just generic ayakashi! Nothing special, nothing specific. Feel free to make up and NPC your own two-bit ayakashi.

THEN WHO WAS PHONE?

In the evening, everyone will receive a set of coordinates and a message from an Anonymous sender,

I want to talk about the
mysterious things that have been happening
lately.
OF course, i
NEED
EVERYONE to come. so don't be
late! see
yoU.
:)

Everyone receives it and there is no way to track where the message came from. If you follow the directions, you'll arrive at a small temple on the outskirts of a city. A sacred fire is lit on the grounds for people to dispose of any cursed or old charms they may have collected. Hang around a bit and it'll become obvious that no one knows who has gathered all of you here tonight. The only ones around are gods and shinki. It doesn't look like any evil spirits are around so other than being invited to the middle of no where at night... there's nothing to worry about. If you wait around, nothing will happen. So while you're here, you might as well discuss the strange happenings! Or tell ghost stories around the fire.

Wildcard

Choose your own adventure! Feel free to make up your own prompts. Ronald Knox's player (

diehardreaper) has offered up their temple as a test of courage in the Far Shore for those who want to try their luck. Check out their description under the Baron's manor.

In Summary:

Beat the heat by feeling a scary chill
Deal with cursed and spirit-imbued items
Keep the Near Shore people safe
Chat about your scary encounters
Have fun~

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

You're his shinki?

[ His headphones are still blaring tinnily from their new home around his neck. Blindly, Gojyo pokes at the device in his pocket, finally giving up with an annoyed sign and pulling the thing out the jab at the nearly invisible buttons on the flat surface until the noise ceases. There.

These things need better on/off buttons, swear to god. ]

What happened to the other guy? [ He slips the little music player back into his pocket and folds his arms aggressively. ] Asshole?

He's here, too. We're both his shinki.

[Her eyes shift curiously to the noisy device around his neck. She still in the process of learning about modern electronics and it's not one she recognises. It doesn't look like a phone from here but maybe they're different types? Hakkai had told her they play music, too.]

I'm Yamazaki Ayumu, exemplar shinki to Hakkai-sama.

[At least she is from what she understands of the ranking order within the temple. Asshole, as much as she loathes even thinking of him by such a vulgar name, is her subordinate when it comes to housework and other tasks that need to be done around the temple when Hakkai's away.]

And you are? You sound familiar with Hakkai-sama.

[And it's important that she get to know all of her god's associates when the opportunity presents itself.]

[ She's so... prim. At least she's not calling him Cho-sama, Gojyo thinks, but using -sama at all for that jerk is enough to get right up under his skin.

Whoever she is, she doesn't deserve to have somebody like Cho as a god. ]

You could say that.

[ Exemplars are supposed to serve as guidance for their gods, right? With Cho and Asshole as his shinki, that means that Cho must have been the exemplar... unless he had a third shinki. With Cho as his moral compass, is it any wonder they're both so fucked up?

Well, that certainly explains why Cho was so shocked to see him that first day, and why he's been jumping between asking responsible and caring, and being just as disgusted with Gojyo as Gojyo's been with him. What a goddamn clusterfuck. ]

I'm Gojyo. Sha Gojyo, shinki to Sharak Sanzo. [ No -sama. ]

[ A pair of chopsticks comes marching out of the temple behind her, spindly legs high-kicking like a dance hall girl. Gojyo can't help but snicker when he spots it. ]

Oi, you've got a friend.

Oh, you're Sanzo-sama's shinki?

[At Gojyo's warning, she looks around behind her, spotting the chopsticks after a moment, then sighs heavily. Even the chopsticks are rebelling now? Ayumu swiftly bends down and snatches them up, holding them tightly in her hand as they start wiggling in protest to keep them still.

She turns back to Gojyo.]

How's she doing? And it's nice to meet you, Gojyo-san.

[ He frowns faintly at the question. Does she know Sharak? Does she know Sharak because Cho knows Sharak, or... shit, no, he's not supposed to be thinking about that stuff. ]

Other'n being pissed off at all the household goods rebelling? [ A slight shrug, and an even slighter grin. Sharak fighting her own robes was a hell of a sight. ] She's fine. ...And I'm no san, okay. I'm just Gojyo.

[ His gaze drifts over her shoulder to the temple beyond, and he doesn't bother concealing how much he dislikes the place. It's a shame, really. She seems like such a nice girl. ]

He's not here, is he?

Not at the moment. He's still out but he should be home in a little bit.

[Given how difficult simply making tea has gotten all of a sudden, Ayumu had wanted to do a rehearsal before her god returned, maybe even surprise Hakkai with some fresh hot tea when he walked in the door. As seen by the smashed teacup, it hasn't been going very well.]

It's good to hear she's doing well all things considered. And I'll try to remember that.

[She flounders a little after that. Normally, she'd invite someone in for tea or snacks but given his distaste for the place and the possessed state of things inside, that doesn't seem like a good option. And Ayumu's not quite sure what to say either so she falls back on what she usually does when she doesn't know what to say these days.]

Have you been in the Heavens long, Gojyo?

[ He wouldn't come in anyway. No way he's staying until Cho gets back.

He answers her question with a snort. ]

You should ask your god about that.

[ Wait, no, dammit, that was rude. He doesn't need to be a dick to Cho's shinki -- she's done nothing wrong. He glances at her in apology and stuffs his hands in his pockets, looking back over her shoulder at the temple. ]

He treatin' you okay?

[It's not the first time that Ayumu's dealt with similar questions. Goku and Chinatsu had been concerned, too. She just smiles politely.]

Hakkai-sama treats me fine. We got off to a rocky start but we've worked things out and things are going smoothly now.

[She hesitates a moment before continuing in a hushed tone.]

You don't seem to be much of a fan.

[ He just snorts at that. ]

You picked up on that, huh?

[ 'A rocky start' could mean a lot of things, and this isn't really any of his business... but. But. ]

Sorry, but I don't trust him. He was here as a shinki before, did you know that? [ He pats the back of his own very bare neck (man buns are stylish and let nobody tell you different). ] Wore his hair long so nobody could see that he was blighted. You be careful around him, okay?

Of course.

[Aside from the detail about the method Hakkai used to conceal his blight, none of this is really news to Ayumu. He'd been pretty upfront with her about the ablution, along with his feelings on the Heavens, and the potential danger she could be in simply by being his shinki. He'd confided in her about his lost love, if only in vague terms, which had clearly been a painful subject. So far, Hakkai hasn't given her sufficient reason to regret her choice to stick with her assignment.

But it's more useful to feign confusion and ignorance so a slightly lost and bewildered expression surfaces instead. She tilts her head in a quizzical manner and when she speaks, it's in a soft, uncertain voice.]

Has Hakkai-sama done anything to make you feel this way about him? Have there been any other incidents to inspire this mistrust?

[ Something in Gojyo's gut twists at that. He doesn't want to scare her, but at the same time he needs to know that she understands the situation she's in. ]

Yeah. [ He chews briefly on his thumbnail. ] Just yesterday he tried tellin' me stuff about my past, until I got blighted and had to leave. [ That's not quite what happened, but it's close enough to the truth. ] If he starts talking to you and you get that feelin' that something's wrong, you turn and run. He doesn't care about blight, or what it could do to you, bein' a shinki.

[Ayumu listens quietly, comparing Gojyo's account of Hakkai with the behaviors she's witnessed from him so far. She's still getting to know Hakkai but enough of this story sounds off enough to her to doubt its authenticity. It'd be premature and hasty to dismiss Gojyo's words entirely as fabrication but she trusts her instincts and they're telling her that there's more to this situation than he's telling her.

Of course, there's the matter that aside from the clothing fiasco in the first days of their partnership, Hakkai's been supportive and kind, even oddly protective toward her at times. She doesn't relax easily around men, she's noticed but she's felt relatively comfortable with her god. Less so with the soulless fellow sharing their home but her god, yes.]

'Kay. I'll keep that in mind.

[After Hakkai gets home, perhaps she should ask him about this Gojyo character.]

Good. [ He's not really sure what to say, not after all that, so he just nods, stuffs his hands in his pockets, and half-turns back toward the road. ] You can always come to Sharak's if you need to.

[ This self-deprecating grin isn't thinking at all about the fact that he basically just invited her to move in with him. Quite the contrary. ]

She's got a thing about pickin' up strays. It'll be fine. ...If you need to.

[It isn't really until that offer than Ayumu starts to take his words seriously. Maybe because home and family feel like important things to her somehow, the offer of a place to go if she needs to sinks in. To make an offer like that means he truly does believe she might be in danger around Hakkai. Either that or the man might have ulterior motives of his own to coax her away from her god's side.]

Thank you.

[She is a little genuinely confused by this development. Ayumu had been under the impression that Sharak and her god were friends. The bonds between people seem so strange to her sometimes.

But she's sure of one thing for certain. It'd be wise to obtain Gojyo's phone number in case further contact is required.]

Ah, do you have a phone?

A phone?

[ He pats his pockets, but he already knows the answer. ]

Not on me. Why?

I just thought it'd be a good idea to exchange numbers. That's all. It'd be a little odd to simply show up without calling first, don't you think?

[She's just now gotten used to carrying hers around everywhere, partly at Hakkai's insistence. He's even made sure his number is the first one on her list in case of an emergency. Ayumu pulls it out of her skirt pocket.]

If you give me your number, I can put it in here. So we can keep in touch if you like.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

018 | Season Spirits

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