23 - Crazy Cat Shuffle

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Crazy Cat Shuffle
When: September 20
Where: Shibuya & Ikebukuro, as well as the Far Shore
Summary: The new Crazy Cat mascot keychains are sparking real passion in Tokyo's hot spots. Brawls have broken out over the extra-rare versions, and all of this angst is attracting ayakashi. The gods have been asked to step in before things get out of control.







Crossing Crisis

The Shibuya scramble crossing is always busy, but it's especially wild today. Ten new Crazy Cat vending machines have been installed at the mouth of the alley across from Shibuya Station's exit. Rumors are flying that these machines have extra Blue-Star Cats in them: the very rarest kind! A crowd of hundreds of excited fans have gathered, but the people at the front of the lines are buying lots of cats, and the mood is starting to grow sour as the people at the back of the lines begin to wonder if there will be any left by the time it's their turn.

This crowd needs crossing guards... or just someone who can snag some of those ultra-rare Cats and sell them to the back of the line for crazy cash. Everything a god does is righteous, after all.

Sunshine Struggle

Crazy Cat machines dot the Sunshine City complex in Ikebukuro. The machines here are attracting some particularly nasty ayakashi: jealous little purple creatures with too many legs that stoke buyers' envy and need for more and better collectibles. Under their influence, it's not just the Cats going fast. The local stores are selling out of everything cute on the shelves.

Worse, some of the ayakashi victims are turning to theft when they run out of pocket money. Time to exterminate those bugs before they start a new crime wave.

Taking Stock

Accident? Sabotage? No one's telling, but a delivery truck carrying boxes of new keychains to restock the machines blew a tire and overturned on a major street. Under the influence of those greedy little ayakashi, collectors are descending on the wreck to snag their favorites before the police show up.

The dazed driver doesn't know what to do, the crowd is starting to get violent, and those Cats do look amazingly cute. And appealing. And, for that matter, valuable.

Bad Kitty

The cat keychains are super cute! Even gods or shinki might be tempted to buy one and take it home, but taking these keychains back to the Far Shore will give away their hidden secret. It's not just human envy that's attracting ayakashi to the Crazy Cats. There are ayakashi hiding inside this batch of cute kitty dolls, and bringing them through a shrine to the Far Shore will force the hidden creatures out of their plushie prisons.

They're big, they're mad, and they're hungry. And the Heavens are full of souls that smell delicious.

The ayakashi escaping from Crazy Cat dolls on the Far Shore resemble gigantic (taller than a person at the shoulder) versions of the cute plushie cats, with very real and sharp teeth and claws. They run and attack at random once released from the dolls, so even gods and shinki who did not bring the toys back could be faced with a fight. The patrolling shinki will do their best to hold them back with borderlines, but they need help to rend these crazy cats before they do too much damage!

In Summary:

• Placate the crowds
• Squash bitty ayakashi
• Struggle with temptation
• Defeat the cat invasion
• Have fun~

Comments

[discerp]

Ah, I see... The sudden spike and drop of blood pressure at the sight of blood will cause you to really faint if you're not careful! [She hovers around him, digging through her little medical bag to pull out a pen light to examine his eyes and pupil reaction, just in case.]

A-are you a healer type too? L-likea doctor, or a nurse or something?

[clothes_make_the_man]

[Forrest isn't exactly sure what she's doing with the light and looks slightly bewildered, but he just lets her do her thing.]

...Something like that, yes. Not by training, but I know enough to at least help with bandaging people.

[discerp]

[Mikan purses her lips a little.] W-well, it's really nice that you w-want to help, but... But it could be dangerous without proper training...

[She puts the light away and offers more water, sitting back.] St-still, they'll need all the help they can get, s-so... So I can't fault you or anything. B-but, please be careful!

--Um, m-my name is Mikan. M-may I know yours'...?

[clothes_make_the_man]

If it weren't the Near Shore, I could use my healing magic, but that would cause too much of a stir.

[Forrest frowns a little as he takes another sip of water.]

At any rate, it's nice to meet you, Mikan. My name is Forrest.

[discerp]

H-healing magic? [She looks surprised and intrigued though.] Th-that's probably a good idea though, ehehe... There's enough panic going on, b-but it'd be really useful too! Oh, um, n-not that you should listen to m-my suggestions...

[Mikan looks pleased to know his name though, at least.] N-nice to meet you too, Forrest-san! Ah, I-I' sorry I didn't say it was nice to meet you first... ! B-but, um... U..

Are you, um... A g-god or a shinki? [She's curious]

[clothes_make_the_man]

No, I'm sure you're much more well-versed in the healing arts than I am. I'm better at mending clothes than wounds.

[There's a small smile as he tries to lighten the mood with a small joke.]

It's all right, I don't mind. I'm here as a substitute for the goddess Lakshmi.

[discerp]

[Mikan tilts her head curiously] Are... Are you good with sewing and fashion...?

[She has no knowledge of gods or anything, but she nods at his explanation.] I'm, um, a g-god too. Er, goddess. Aceso! She's, um, the g-goddess of the healing process... So... So I guess it fits.

[clothes_make_the_man]

Yes, it's been my passion for almost as long as I can remember. I make all my own clothes, and I've recently started taking commissions as well.

[It's easy to tell how much he enjoys it just from how much his face lights up as he's talking avbout it.]

That does sound rather fitting. Lakshmi is a goddess of wealth and beauty, so I got lucky as well.

[discerp]

[She considers this a moment] Because... You're so pretty too? [Is that why he got lucky?? It sees to fit him, at least. Though she quickly turns red and waves her hands as if to dispel her own words]

I-I'm sorry! I-I think it's great y-you fit your god-- Er, goddess, so well! I just, um... I just... 'God' is too big a title f-for someone as low as me, so... Other people fit the roles pretty well, but, but I really don't feel I deserve it...

[clothes_make_the_man]

It's all right. You don't have to apologize. I put a lot of work into my appearance, after all.

[Usually Forrest is the one people have to reassure. He's not used to landing so consistently on this side of a conversation.]

I felt the same way when I first arrived, but you get used to it over time. You just have to figure out what you can do, and then try your best.