October Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: September 4th
Where: Meeting Hall, the Far Shore
Summary: Training and informational sessions for newly arrived gods and shinki



In anticipation of the latest round of new arrivals, Heaven has partnered with the new gods and shinki to organize a very helpful informational reception.

It seems Bishamon's temple is unavailable this week due to business, although she has generously allowed a number of her shinki to go on with their usual tasks of passing out pamphlets and assisting the newcomers to settle in.

Gods and shinki arriving at heaven's meeting hall are, should they allow it, guided kindly towards a traditional-style dojo and banquet hall towards the back of the meeting hall itself. The gods and shinki are free to take their time during this day to learn about the details of their new life from Amaterasu's shinki or from the many veteran new god and shinki volunteers.




God Training

Newly arrived gods are escorted into a banquet hall for an informational meeting covering the basics of proper god behavior, although the minor deity conducting the meeting is in too much of a rush to take questions afterwards. They are encouraged to discuss the information with each other and ask questions of more experienced gods, as well as instructed to guide their new shinki appropriately.

Shinki Training

Various volunteers are stationed around the dojo, passing out helpful informational pamphlets. There are many shinki, including Bishamon's and Amaterasu's, who will be more than happy to train in using the borderline as well as offering a lecture on the basics of what is expected of a shinki and the importance of teamwork with other shinki and with gods. Shinki are encouraged to work together to practice what they've learned and discuss their perspectives.

The garden is available for borderline practice, and a few of the last training's slightly tattered crayon-drawn borderline targets have been brought back out and pinned to bales of straw to make a practice area. One of Amaterasu's shinki is drawing replacements with a large inked calligraphy brush. His targets are simple but elegant, but somehow, before they make it over to the target bales, they're ending up crayon-scribbled into much brighter colors. Maybe it's the child shinki who are in charge of putting them up? They do seem to be giggling a lot, and Amaterasu's artist shinki is looking more and more annoyed...

Physical Training

The dojo is stocked with a wide variety of practice weapons, traditional and modern, to offer some practice opportunity to gods who, for example, find themselves with a sword shinki but are at risk of cutting off their own toes. It's also useful for veteran new gods wishing to train with their current partner shinki.

There's an additional task that the hosts are more than willing to ask for help with. The Meeting Hall seems to be suffering an invasion of cute soot sprites. Although they're harmless little spirits, they leave smears of ash and soot wherever they go, and the shinki are running themselves ragged trying to keep the hardwood floors and white walls clean! They're handing out cleaning rags and flyswatters to squash the soot sprites flat and scrub the resulting smears away -- and, for the softhearted, butterfly nets: although they implore anyone with a net to be sure they let the soot sprites out again far, far away.

Rest and Refreshments

The meeting hall's facilities are less modernized than Bishamon's: there are rainwater barrels set out by the dojo with fresh towels for hardworking gods and shinki to wash their face and hands. The water is ice cold, so it's very refreshing, too-- brr!

By lunchtime, the banquet hall where the gods' informational session was held has been cleaned out and re-set with cushions to sit on around long, low tables. Gods and shinki who come inside for lunch will be served a plain but hearty meal, with soup, rice, fish and pickled vegetables to refresh them for the afternoon's training.

The hall will stay open even after the lunches and tables have been cleared away, so that those who want a quieter space to talk with their new partners can find somewhere in the room. Hopefully the occasional stampede of soot sprites won't be too distracting.

In Summary:

• Get all the information you can handle
• Veteran new gods and shinki are welcome to volunteer showing the ropes
• Get in some training
• Help catch soot sprite pests
• Spectate if you want
• Have fun~

Comments

[artificialrose]

[ k e n ]

If I'd fallen onto you, it would have slowed you down.

[junkyarddog]

But you didn't, byon. [Ken idly scratches his head. He doesn't see where Garry is going with this.]

[artificialrose]

[KEN. Garry has to press one hand into his face, not minding at the moment the soot it leaves there.]

Just because I didn't this time doesn't mean you'll always be so lucky if you do the same thing to me or someone else. Does that make sense?

[junkyarddog]

Yeah, but what's the point of worrying about it unless it happens?

[artificialrose]

[Garry needs a moment to just... sigh. Has no one really taught this kid?]

If you could stop something happening before it happened... Wouldn't that be easier than dealing with a mess?

[junkyarddog]

[Ken scratches his ear.] How come I'm getting lectured when I didn't make a mess, byon? Shouldn't you be the one who should be more careful about moving faster next time?

[artificialrose]

...Ken. You barreled into me.

[It's not a "mess", exactly, but still.]

Anyway... Don't you think that kind of thinking is a little unfair for people?

[junkyarddog]

Yeah, but you're the one who fell over. It wouldn't be a problem if you hadn't fallen over, right? [Ken...

Honestly, Garry's showing more patience than this conversation necessarily deserves.

At Garry's question, however, Ken looks genuinely puzzled.] Isn't expecting other people to care about what happens to you kinda weird? Hardly anyone does. It's safer to look out for yourself, byon.

[artificialrose]

[Garry is quiet for a moment as he tries so very hard to explain to this clearly very feral child that he wouldn't have fallen over if Ken hadn't run into him... when he goes and says that, and Garry finds himself staring, speechless.]

[That's.... a depressing thing to hear from someone who doesn't seem like they belong out of high school. Sure, there's a certain amount of rough and tumble to be expected from teenage boys, but that's...]

Do... you really think no one else would care if something bad happened to you?

[junkyarddog]

Chikusa would, byon. [Ken says this with the confidence of someone who's had this tested a few times.] And Roy-sama. And probably Hakkai-sama and Zero, too. But that's not that many people.

[artificialrose]

I would, as well. [A gentle reminder.] I'm sure if plenty of other people saw that you were in trouble, they'd also come help you.

You can't think of any time when that's happened here?

[junkyarddog]

You would? [Ken blinks. He clearly hadn't considered, for even a second, that Garry might care if he lives or dies.

He does hesitate at Garry's logic, frowning. There...have been an awful lot of people who've offered him help or nice things without any reason to in the heavens, haven't there...?] Well, yeah, but... [This doesn't compute to Ken, so he searches for an alternate explanation - and quickly finds one.] That's just 'cause this is heaven, byon. Of course there's nicer people here.

[artificialrose]

I would.

[It's a gentle affirmation, accompanied by an equally gentle smile like he'd use on someone much younger than Ken honestly is. Still, this mixture of oblivious recklessness and ignorance to people being nice... It sort of makes him want to put on the kiddy gloves anyway.]

[Especially with such a childish argument, and Garry ducks his head for a moment.]

Well, I guess that's true. [Even if he's run into an asshole from personal experience.] So does that mean you'll do nice things as well?

[junkyarddog]

...why?

[Ken seriously thinks Garry needs a specific reason to care about whether he lives or dies, and can't seem to imagine what reason that would be.

Garry's logic draws a frown, though.] I don't think I'm a nice person...but I guess heaven's not just for nice people, byon. It's too much like being alive.

[artificialrose]

Hm? Well.... I've thought you're a good kid so far.... even if you think you're not nice. Like....

[Racking his brain for a moment, he snaps his fingers.]

I think I saw you at that job fair, right? You were practicing your borderline.

[junkyarddog]

[Ken frowns. There's some deep cogitation going on here.] And...that makes me good...?

[artificialrose]

That's right. [A soft smile crosses his face.] It meant you were working hard learning how to protect someone, right? Like your god. [Ah, wait-] Sorry, there were two on the sign, right?

[junkyarddog]

Yeah. Li Tieguai and Epona. And there's Chikusa too, byon. I'm gonna protect all of 'em.

[artificialrose]

Then that's a part of you that's definitely good, not only wanting to learn how to protect others, but working towards it, too.

[junkyarddog]

That's all it takes to be good? [Ken seems skeptical.] I thought you had to be, like...nice and stuff, byon. And not maul people, even if they deserve it.

[artificialrose]

Maul- ? [Wait, no.] Nevermind.

[He's not sure he wants to know right now...]

There are lots of ways to be good... It can be pretty difficult sometimes. Being nice can be a part of being good, but it's not all> there is to it.

[junkyarddog]

So...all you have to do to be good is protect people who're important to you? [Ken looks thoughtful. Is he better than he thought he was?]

[artificialrose]

It's definitely a part of it. [Suddenly he feels like he needs a visual aid...] But you're definitely doing something good if you're protecting them.

[junkyarddog]

...you're a weird guy, byon. [Ken studies Garry briefly.] People don't usually call me good...

[artificialrose]

I think I've heard that before... But that's fine. I am being honest, which I think is the important thing.