20 | Shopping Frenzy!

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Helping a grand opening go well
When: August 21
Where: The Near Shore
Summary: The owners and employees at a new shopping center are begging for help. Bad luck has plagued them, and their grand opening is this weekend! Gods and shinki alike have been asked to respond to their prayers on Opening Day, find the source of their misfortune and ensure that the opening goes smoothly.



The Yamada Corporation is opening a new, high-class department store in a Tokyo suburb. They've been running advertisements for weeks and excitement among their prospective customers is at a fever pitch. Unfortunately, things inside the project aren't going so well. Construction has been delayed, deliveries are wrong, employees keep getting sick or hurt on the job and it's starting to look like the grand opening will be a grand disaster. Their fervent prayers for help have reached the Heavens, who are passing them along to you to be granted... but with an addition: Heaven, too, is very interested in learning where that bad luck is coming from.



Maintenance Madness

For a brand-new building, Yamada Department Store is having a lot of maintenance issues. Toilets are overflowing, lights are burning out, stair railings are coming loose, and either the air conditioning is set so cold there's frost on the vents or it's not working at all. The overworked maintenance crew needs all the help they can get! How many gods does it take to change a light bulb?

Secret Shoppers

Are you really going undercover to make sure you stop problems before they start, or just enjoying a day of high-class shopping on Heaven's dime? Whatever your real motivation is, all expenses are covered... but you'll still want to keep an eye out for mishaps. Unfortunately, the grocery and bakery in the basement are under construction (they've had some flooding problems) but there are still six floors of designer clothes, consumer goods and restaurants to enjoy.

Retail Rescue

Between mysterious accidents and that nasty flu that seems to be going around, the department store is badly understaffed. Grab an employee uniform and someone else's nametag and pitch in before the lines get too long. There are positions open in every department, from the restaurant on the top floor to book sales on floor one.

It's not just sales and service you have to worry about: thanks to the store's misfortune, displays are toppling over, the wrong orders are coming in, fancy candies are melting all over the shelves and ink tags are exploding on their own. This is hard work!

Intrepid Investigators

The Heavens aren't just sending so much supernatural help to this department store to keep their faithful followers happy. They have reason to suspect that there's something more sinister behind this mysterious streak of extra-bad luck. Between keeping the lights on and the customers happy,
you've been asked to search the store and investigate all of the "unlucky" incidents in order to determine what's going on. The shinki who brought you this request hinted that Heaven would look favorably on anyone who uncovered something particularly useful....

If your character is investigating the department store and needs to know what they have found, please comment to the "Investigations" thread below with a link to your thread. Your hint will be provided.

Investigation threads longer than 10 comments will earn 200 followers for every god in the thread and 20 exp for every shinki. Once your thread reaches that length, please turn it in by replying to your hint under the "Investigations" thread to let us know you've earned the bonus.

In Summary:

• Keep the lights on
• Take some time out to enjoy a shopping trip
• Make sure the customers are happy
• Discover the cause of the bad luck
• Have fun~

Comments

[kokuyoyo]

Obviously not the old gods....

[He pauses, staring at her as she tries to work.]

....It's cold.

[nolittlesecret]

[If Chikusa tells him he needs food for a friend, Nari will provide that, too. No one goes hungry.]

Well, yeah. I ain't much of a shopper, and someone needs to feed hungry people. Besides, we're supposed to be helping, and this gives me something to do other than fix AC units.

[alchemists]

Any of the vents running along this set of piping would be effected so it's safe to say that we could keep going in this direction.

[ Though the best thing to do would be finding the AC hub. ]

[kagenonadeshiko]

They are.

[Her tone's a little chilly compared to its usual warmth when she speaks to Chikusa. It's not even that Ayumu's angry with him exactly, though she's not exactly pleased he was a willing participant in the naming that led to Hakkai winding up in such a poor state. After her talks about wanting to be the best shinki she can for her god, it's hard not to feel a little betrayed that Chikusa endangered him like that. Maybe she's upset with Hakkai, too, for making such a foolish, short-sighted, and selfish decision without so much as text to warn her he'd be bringing another new shinki into their home. But more than anyone, Ayumu's upset with herself for being so distracted and failing so miserably at the moral guidance aspect of her job that she'd nearly lost her god.

Even so, regardless of whatever emotional turmoil or issues Ayumu might be having, they're here to do a job and doing that job comes before her personal feelings.]

It sounds like the contractors are working on something besides construction down below but I haven't been down to verify yet.

[kokuyoyo]

[Ah. She's talking to him, at least, and she hasn't attacked. Chikusa isn't so sure that he'd be as patient, if it were Axel who had involved in a similar situation.... but he tries not to let himself dwell too hard on that.]

[He's been spacing out enough as it is for the past few week. Dwelling will just make it worse.]

[Perhaps that's why he's bothering with this mess at all, if only to give his mind something else to focus on, and his gaze drifts away from her slowly.]

If you had to guess the state of it..... What would you say it's like down there...?

[kokuyoyo]

[Trust him, he definitely will. Ken is a good dog and must be rewarded.]

I see.... I didn't think you'd be that kind of god....

[Considering that they both met while shoplifting, u kno]

[kagenonadeshiko]

[The line of work she'd performed in life had required great amounts of patience, careful thought, and perception - all thing Ayumu excelled at and despite the trauma involved in her death, those traits remained. The best manipulators are those with strong empathy, observation skills, and self-control - also traits that remain.

She considers his question, mulling it over with the information she'd managed to gather. The construction hadn't advanced and the grocery store had been behind schedule long before today. From what she'd heard from the employees, there were doubts that any work had been done at all. But enough had been done to suggest a potential smokescreen so Ayumu doubts it would be completely empty. It'd arouse too much suspicion to have no progress at all...

After a couple of minutes of pondering, she answers.]

Mostly barren. Maybe some evidence of construction work to suggest that it is being done but not nearly enough to indicate it's the priority of whatever operation they're doing downstairs. It'd be a pretty flimsy cover.

[She pauses briefly.]

Water or water damage if the story about flooding is true.

[kokuyoyo]

...Not quite flooding.

[But it is a bit wet, just because things have been clogging up.]

[Still-]

You're right on everything else.... I glanced down there and it's weirdly empty for a place that was supposed to open....

[heartshutter]

[ He's talking about the mood rings. Tatara knows he's talking about the mood rings, and frankly, in that one instance, he's willing to defend his purchase!!

...Kind of. He pulls one out, slipping it on his right ring finger, watching in muted amusement as it changes colors immediately. ]

Kusanagi-san really is no fun sometimes. [ That's... not really a defense. ] Besides, I think Sakon and Shouhei will like them!

[ Or, one of them will. The other will probably smile and graciously accept, then leave it somewhere and say they "lost" it.

Distracted as he is, the god doesn't realize he's been squandering his time until the server comes over to take an order and Tatara hasn't even cracked open the menu yet. ]

Aah, sorry, sorry -- I'll be just a moment! Kusanagi-san, you order first, okay?

[heartshutter]

Understood!

[ With that, he runs said flaming fingertips over the ice on the vent, leaving it quickly melting away. ]

Next~! [ It's not really a command, just him sort of... announcing what he's doing as he moves over to the next vent.

And sure, they should probably find the AC hub. But Tatara's helpful, not an overachiever. Or a mechanic. Still, if Elfnein suggests it, he might be willing to give it a shot... ]

[kagenonadeshiko]

[That certainly gets her attention and for the first time, Ayumu looks at him directly, her expression unreadable.]

What else did you notice? Anything else out of the ordinary?

[The contractors and the corporation are certainly suspicious but Ayumu needs more information to go on before she can plan her next move.]

[heartshutter]

[ Hey, sometimes he speaks too softly. It could very well be his fault! ]

Sorry! I meant the restaurant -- did you want to try it?

[kokuyoyo]

Plastic sheeting everywhere, mostly... I think there were some maintenance people down there trying to fix things, but no one else.

[His shoulders rise up loosely.]

....Since there's not a lot of people.... I was going to take Ken down there later....

[Sniff things out, bust down a metal door, u kno]

[kokuyoyo]

[For a second, he just looks around, blinking, before his attention returns to him.]

....You meant me, right...?

[Restaurant invitations are rather sudden in his view, even when he is paying attention.]

[kagenonadeshiko]

I'll come with you. I want to take a look at what's down there myself.

[Ayumu just needs to find a place to stash her shopping cart first. Everything's bought and paid for and to say she would be very irate to have all her purchases stolen would be a vast understatement.]

Know any good places to hide these for safekeeping?

[She gestures to the shopping bags and boxed teaset stuffing her cart to bursting.]

[revolutionfalcon]

[Given it's Chikusa, Shun didn't necessarily expect him to actually be here investigating as opposed to shoplifting (or shopping on someone else's funds, in this case). At least signposting the problem means they're definitely both on the same page.

Shun was having some issues with the air conditioning units earlier, though, and he eyes the one Chikusa is looking at with a wary eye.]

I was fixing a few of those earlier, but I didn't find anything that looked wrong with the ones just putting out cold air. Whatever the issue is with those might be deeper into them.

[revolutionfalcon]

Shun and Chikusa are poking around on the first floor in some of the air conditioning units that are putting out cold air here.

[heartshutter]

I don't see anyone else around here, do you?

[ Tatara shrugs.

Sure, it's unexpected, but there's nothing wrong with that, is there? ]

If you'd rather not, it's fine! Just say so.

Retail Rescue > Intrepid Investigators

[pure_radiantics]

[ She notices D2 struggling and puts down the shopping she was in the middle of. She's more than willing to help D2 out with young kids, considering she's not long past her teenage years herself. Even though she invited D2 to the sleepover awhile back, it strikes her that he's struggling with the much younger kids. She laughs a little and then makes her way over.

After awhile though, Kairi suddenly can't see D2 anymore before looking around for him. That's when she spies him walking around and tries to follow him. She doesn't recognize the song at all. ]

Hey, are you feeling okay?

[ Maybe he's looking for a corner to get sick in. ]

Maintenance Madness

[pure_radiantics]

But, Apollo...

[ She's trying to be gentle. She's just kind of walking in from another store and stumbled into this. ]

Everyone deserves a break, don't they? They look like they've been working hard.

1.b. Fifth Floor

[pure_radiantics]

How cute!

[ Kairi is wandering around at this point and found the sun-powered toys as well. Only then does she look up to realize who it is. ]

Oh! ... Tatara, wasn't it?

[ A god, she remembers that much. ]

Do you have your eyes on one of these little guys already?

Secret Shoppers

[pure_radiantics]

[BUMP!]

Ah-!! I'm-

[Kairi spins to face the young man.]

I'm so sorry, I wasn't paying attention.

[She looks a little sheepish.]

I haven't been out a lot lately...

6th Floor > Investigators

[pure_radiantics]

[Oh look, it's someone that the rest of the shoppers are mostly avoiding while walking around. That's a good enough cue to Kairi. This is someone she doesn't know, either.]

Uhm, hello there. My name is Kairi. Do you mind if I join you?

Maintenance Madness

[pure_radiantics]

[Well he's in such a good mood that of course she wants to say hi. It's been so long, after all... Little does she realize.]

Hi Nari. You're kind of enjoying this, aren't you?

[She's a little soft-spoken by comparison to the hubbub of the department store all around them, but she's genuinely happy to see him.]

[fullcowl]

[He's pretty sure mice shouldn't be in this department store either, but here they are.]

... No, that looks like it was deliberately placed. The only thing that's supposed to be around pipes is insulation. Do you think we'd find something similar if we looked at the candle department?