24 - Autumn Reception

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone!
What: Autumn Reception
When: September 30, 6 PM
Where: The Gods' Meeting Hall
Summary: The Heavens are throwing a formal party! Old and new gods alike are invited, so put on your nicest outfits and some good dancing shoes, and come see what this shindig is all about.







Front Door

The door of the Meeting Hall is wide open, warm golden light spilling out from the well-lit corridor inside. Shinki in white robes with golden chrysanthemums -- a fancier, heavier version of the usual robes -- stand to either side of the door, ready to check invitations. Each invitation is taken, the name carefully noted on a scroll held by one of the door attendants, and the invitation returned.

Since the invitations were delivered to gods, shinki are being allowed in as part of a god's entourage, but unaccompanied shinki will be questioned, and any god who forgot to bring their invitation will be turned away to go find it. Better make sure you have a last-minute date to the ball!

Reception

Once past the vigilant door guards, attendees will be escorted to a truly massive room, the floor polished hardwood and the roof far overhead supported by wooden columns so big that it would take four people holding hands to reach around one. White-robed shinki, in the same more-formal garments as the gate guards, are circulating throughout the room holding trays stacked with exquisitely crafted hors d'oeuvres, bottles of soda, or glasses of sake and sparkling wines.

The room is about half full, and soft music is playing from an unseen source. It's clear that several of the old gods have arrived, too, although they're largely keeping to themselves among small groups of their shinki, whose formal dress seems to be some variety of uniform -- color, cut and style vary wildly between different gods, but within a group, they all match.

Banquet

Two hours after the doors open, it's finally time to eat! Food is served in an adjoining room, where long tables are set to accommodate all the guests. Platters of sashimi, sushi, vegetables and deep-fried tidbits are brought around, as well as individual plates of the main courses; most of the food is Japanese, but not all, and the white-robed shinki serving take special requests.

As the banquet begins to wind to a close, the peal of a bell rings through the room, and Amaterasu steps out onto a raised dais towards the front of the room. She's accompanied by four of the white-robed shinki, all of whom are wearing swords, and although she looks like a girl of no more than twelve, her expression is grave and worried.

"Thank you all for coming here tonight, and for your efforts to support peace in the Heavens and in the mortal world. We are grateful for your hard work.

"Over the past several months, we have faced many challenges. Ayakashi have intruded into these lands more than once, and I myself came under attack when my temple was set on fire. We are making every effort to discover the responsible parties, and once we do, they will face Heaven's justice. For now, I have an important request for all of you.

"Please be watchful and alert. Be careful what you bring with you to the Heavens and watch for strangers in your temples and shrines. But even in a time like this, remember that we must remain in harmony with each other. Conflict in Heaven brings conflict on earth. If you think you have seen anything suspicious, bring that information to the nearest guards. I hope we can all work together, our new colleagues as well as the old..." She hesitates, drawing herself up, and then says quickly, "Thank you. Please enjoy yourself tonight," before turning to leave the room, guards close behind her.

Dancing

After Amaterasu's speech, the dinner dishes are cleared, and the guests are welcome to return to the previous room. The music is louder, enough to cover quiet conversation or to be danced to; it's a selection of Western ballroom dance tunes and classical Japanese music, and the center of the room is clear for would-be dancers.

The circulating servers are offering little sweets on their trays now, along with the same drink selection.

In Summary:

• Don't forget your invitation
• Enjoy the party
• Dinner and a speech
• Try some dancing
• Have fun~

Comments

A

[welcome_home]

[ Nanako's been taking in the somewhat unfamiliar faces of the Old Gods herself, scanning their number for one in particular and not finding it just yet. She looks a little disappointed about it, too, but glances up when she hears Shun speak. ]

You mean the other gods? Do you know them, Shun-oniichan?

[revolutionfalcon]

I know a few of them. Amaterasu and her advisors, Bishamon, Orihime and Yato I've met before, but Yato went off somewhere to investigate something and Bishamon's been busy, so I'm not expecting either of them.

[Amaterasu and the advisors are mostly the ones that interest him, though, since he hasn't seen hide nor hair of them for the last few months. Amaterasu in particular he hasn't seen since the night of the fire, and he'd like to ask her a bit more about that.]

[welcome_home]

Do you think Ammy will show up here tonight? [ Nanako peers back at the cluster of old gods hopefully. ] I haven't seen her in a long time.

[revolutionfalcon]

Probably. When she organises parties like this, she usually shows up at them, and this one has had her symbols all over it.

[It would be bizarre for her not to show up at all after so much trouble, and especially with both the old and new gods invited. Shun doubts she didn't have some kind of hand in that mingling.]

I haven't seen her since the temple fire either.

[welcome_home]

Oh good. I was hoping she would. [ Nanako looks relieved about that. ] I don't think I know those gods, but I know Suujin and Fuujin. They're nice.

[revolutionfalcon]

Two of the advisors, then. Suijin is the only one of the three I really bother with, the other two are idiots. [But he'd presume Fuujin at least has the decency to not be the kind of prick he is to just about everyone to a kid like Nanako, which would explain why she thinks he's nice.]

[welcome_home]

[ She blinks up at him in surprise. ]

What? Why? And who's the third one?

[revolutionfalcon]

The third is Raijin. I've only met him once, but he's too proud for my liking. And Fuujin's attitude towards anyone he considers "lower" than him is infuriating, especially when he thinks all of us are.

[It's mostly that which pisses him off about Fuujin, the attitude that being a god naturally rather than being handed the role makes him superior. As far as Shun's concerned, the gods of this world are just people as well.]

[welcome_home]

[ Nanako's eyes go a little wide at that. ]

Is that the Thunderstorm god? Ammy told me about him, she said he's nice.

Fuujin doesn't like the new gods and shinki very much, though. [ She hums thoughtfully. ] Suijin asked me to go talk to him once.

[revolutionfalcon]

As far as I know. I didn't see much of him that first time. [So Amaterasu may or may not be right, but it doesn't make much of a difference to him anyway.

Shun grimaces a bit at the mention of having to talk to Fuujin.] I had to find something of Kaede's once because he couldn't be bothered doing it himself. At least she's more reasonable than he is.

[welcome_home]

Thunderstorms are scary. [ Nanako still sounds a little dubious about how anyone who is the god of those could be nice, no matter what Ammy says.

She blinks at him before smiling. ] Oh, yes! She is! I like Kaede, she's really nice! Did you help her find what she lost, then? That was really nice of you, Shun.

[revolutionfalcon]

The powers of any one of the advisors can be. Wind can be a typhoon, and water can be a tsunami. [Simply water, wind and storms doesn't seem to give much credence to how threatening each one of them could be on their own merits.

Though Shun looks doubtful about the niceness of it, he inclines his head in answer to her question.] I wouldn't have looked if it wasn't for someone other than him. But we found it in the end.

[welcome_home]

[ She tips her head to the side to consider that. ] Yeah, I guess you're right! They can always be pretty scary, too. But wind and water can be nice and quiet, too. I don't think thunderstorms can ever be that way, though...

I'm glad. Suijin said she thought we could change his mind about not liking the new gods, so maybe you helped with that, too!

[revolutionfalcon]

Depends how strong it is. [Rumbling in the distance compared to a nearby thunderstorm is a considerable difference, though that just means the worst of it is happening elsewhere.

Shun can't help but give a faint snort at the suggestion he might've helped Fuujin not dislike the new gods.] I spent half the time I was searching his temple insulting him. Trust me, if anyone's going to convince him not to hate us all, it's not going to be me.

[welcome_home]

[ Nanako blinks at him a moment before sighing and shaking her head. ] That probably wasn't very nice, Shun-oniichan. Why were you insulting him, though? You don't like him either?

[revolutionfalcon]

No. He's an idiot set in his ways who couldn't give a damn about any of us if we're not bowing down to him. I don't get on with people who think they're entitled to the respect of others.

[As much as Nanako might not understand the particular annoyance behind that, Shun feels he should at least explain himself properly. Nanako seems to like him, but it's rare that anyone's that nasty to her.]

[welcome_home]

[ That's true, it is.

Still, Nanako looks a little troubled. Apparently getting the old gods and new gods to get along was going to be a more difficult project than Suijin had told her. ]

What if he changed his mind?

[revolutionfalcon]

I wouldn't believe it until I saw actual proof. He doesn't seem like the sort to have his mind changed easily.

[Hence Shun's complaint about being set in his ways, because as far as he's seen, he's determined to consider the new gods inferior just on the basis of not having been gods from the beginning.]

[welcome_home]

But if he did?

[ Nanako's not the type to give up easily, after all. ]

[revolutionfalcon]

If he did - and that seems unlikely - it'd depend on how he was outside of that. He doesn't seem like the kind of person I'd ever get along with, but I suppose I might be able to tolerate him if I had to.

[Shun's not going to promise anything he's not prepared to uphold, and theories about people he already strongly dislikes are one of those things he has difficulty promising.]